


Rebel Slave

by Aunty_Climatic



Category: Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: Original Player Characters, Original Twi'lek characters - Freeform, Slave Ezra, unsure ghost crew
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-05
Updated: 2019-02-03
Packaged: 2019-07-25 16:03:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 29,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16200908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aunty_Climatic/pseuds/Aunty_Climatic
Summary: For as long as he could remember, this was his life. From tortures seen and unseen, he believes nothing will change. Until he is acquired but a rag tag crew.He still believes that there are things worse than Death, but maybe there are also things still worth fighting for.





	1. Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> I got the idea for writing this by reading My World Beyond Being a Slave by: Ezraismybae on Fanfiction. I am using their idea, but I'm my own format.
> 
> So without Further ado, Let the chaos ensue.

I look around the dark storage unit, and from what used to be thirty bodies of all different races and species has dwindled down to ten, scratch that, the one closest to the doors is taken thus lowering that down to nine. I take a breath out of my mouth to avoid the stench of sweat and burnt flesh, as the odor has taken over the carrier some time ago. If we weren't used to it, someone would have thrown up by now.

I scoot as far back as I can while awaiting my turn, and the shackles keeping me in the unit drag against the ground, alerting those in the area of my movement. A familiar pain over takes my left leg and as I move to sooth it, a stern cough and glare from the doors warns me and I move in slow deliberate moves until my hand is resting just above my knee, I slowly rub the spot for a bit before I sit back and the guard turns back around. While his back is turned I make the same slow movements and bring my hands up to shift the collar resting on my neck up and off the burns.

I only get a second of a soft breeze on it before a body kneels in front of me and begins to switch the chains from around my ankles for a pair of my own. I look around the carrier and finally notice how all of the other bodies have disappeared. The guard grabs my wrist shackles and drags me out like the rest, before shoving me roughly into the blinding sunlight and center stage.

I bring my bound wrist to block the light, allowing my eyes to slowly adjust to the light. Off to the right I hear the gavel hit the podium, and know that my life is about to change once again. As I look past my bangs and stare out at the crowd of people, I can't help but wonder which one will soon take control of my life. At this thought something tells me to look up, and I spot a ragtag group of four.

* * *

A run down ship lands on the outskirts of the Capital City on Lothal. The mission set about for the five crew members was shopping for ship parts and supplies for the crew. To accomplish most of this, the crew heads to the back alleys and side markets to avoid imperials. In going this route they find one of the more deplorable practices of the republic, a stage set apart from the rest of the market that hosts a slave auction.

A young Twi'lek is lead off stage, and a slim youth is push on to replace her. Kanan watches as the boy limps lightly to center stage, nearly tripping due to the oversized pants dragging on the floor. The pants are only kept up thanks to the draw sting pulled taunt while the large shirt hangs off one shoulder. The shackles and chains around his wrists and ankles make him seem smaller than he is, with a collar around his neck and dirt caked on every inch of his body. His disheveled hair hangs past his shoulders and is unevenly cut, with bangs hanging in his face hiding it from view.

The crew is about to move on when the boy on stage looks past the tangles of hair, and a pair of eyes the color of the clearest skies, glances over the crowd.

As the boys eyes pass over the ragtag group, Kanan felt a stirring in the force, just as the auctioneer began the introductions. "Our last slave is a native Loth-rat acquired at the young age of nine. He has been in our possession for five years, and trained in a large range of jobs. Now, before you let his scrawny stature and slight disabilities deter you, this boy here is as hard a worker as they come. We'll start the bid at 10 credits."

The rest of the crew see that Kanan has stopped at the back of the bidding crowd and is studying the youth on stage. A moment passes, and to the shock of the crew Kanan raises his arm and shouts out "40 Credits!"

Hera drags his arm down a second too late as the bid is already acknowledged, "What are you doing bidding on a slave?" He ignores her in favor of raising the bid with a shouted "80 Credits!"

"Kanan!" Hera screeches

"I can sense him Hera, through the force." as he says this he hears someone in the crowd shout out "110 Credits!"

"Kanan, we don't have the credits for this, we need to get the supplies first."

He stops to think this over as the bids begins to stager, and nearly stopping at 130 credits. The next bid raises the total by ten. Kanan and Hera look to his left where Sabine stands raising Kanan's hand in a way that the auctioneer can't see. "I think you should help him." is all she says as she studies the dirt clad youth on stage, remembering a time when she was forced to do something against her will.

"Do I hear a 145, 145 credits for this fine slave." A few glances were shared among the crowd, The auctioneer seems to hesitate for a moment before hitting the podium. Kanan can see a look of discontent overtake the auctioneer's face at not being able to earn more off of the boy. "Than the last slave goes to the gentleman in the back. Come back stage to make your payment and claim your slave."

As he says this the boy limps back stage with what could only be described as a look of fear and apprehension. While the crowd dispersed. Before the boy disappears backstage Kanan catches the fear in the force and can only assume something will go wrong.


	2. The Way Back Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've gotta say, I never thought this would be that popular, but since it is... YAY! Ok, so I'd like to warn you that I'll be pulling this out of my arse, so if you ave any suggestions on what you would like to see in later chapters. let me know and I shall see if it works or not. If I do use your idea, I shall give credit where credit is due. Even if I use only a bit of your idea.
> 
> So without further ado, Let the chaos ensue

Kanan and the crew head to the back to collect the boy when what sounds like a pained grunts comes from the location. Kanan once again feels fear through the force and rushes into the back to see someone other than the auctioneer hitting the boy with an electrified baton as the boy merely stands there and takes it.

"You were supposed to be worth more than a measly 140 credits. Even the Quarren was sold for more than you." he says as he slowly walks around the youth. Hitting him in different areas on each round. The boy merely grunts and flinches as the baton discharges small bursts of electricity through his body with each blow. The areas where the boy was hit are scorched. Kanan stops the man just as he pulls out a remote that no doubt activates the collar.

"Who are you and what do you think you are doing?" Kanan all but yells at the man. The rest of the crew files in and Hera moves to hold the boy close, even at the flinch she receives. "I'm his handler, and I was just making sure he wouldn't misbehave while in your possession." And with that he raises the hand still holding the controller. The boy merely brings his hands up to his neck and closes his eyes, preparing for the pain that is sure to come. When it doesn't come he opens one eye to see Kanan holding the handlers wrist in a vice like grip, with the other he grabs the remote.

"You are no longer in control of him, so I'll be taking that." The handler just tchs and walks away. The boy having just escaped being electrocuted slips out of Hera's grip and falls to his knees. Sabine kneels down next to him, and lightly places a hand on his shoulder, only to have him jerk away and stare at the group wide eyed.

The first one he takes notice of is the female directly in front of him. The armor screams Mandalorian, but with a style distinctly her own. There are paint splatters on the boots and gloves, which he can't help but to see as something else. The black chest and shoulder plates are an array of colors and patterns, some not recognizable to him. Her hair is dyed a dark blue with bright orange tips. strapped to her side are holsters that are distinctly for blasters.

The next one he takes notice of is one that hasn't spoken once, but by the glare on his face the youth can tell he isn't too happy to be here. Their fur is a smoky purple with a dark purple goatee and side burns. They have wide spread feet with four toes as well as four fingers. Their outfit consists of yellow browns and green. Seeing this person forces a memory long forgotten to come to mind of someone who cared for him.

Next to him is a female Twi'lek. goggles were at the base of her lekku with a grey wrap covering the area where they connect with her skull. She wears an oversized beige shirt with brown work gloves, vest, and boots. Her look is completed with safety orange coveralls. In his years of being a slave he has seen plenty of Twi'leks, all dressed in revealing clothing, but seeing the one in front of him makes that image seem wrong.

The last figure he notices is the one who technically owns him at this point. His brown hair is slicked back and pulled into a ponytail. Armor covers his right arm as well as replaces the sleeve of his green shirt. A holster hangs off his right leg. At his side he sees an old droid painted orange. At the sight of the droid the youth doesn't care if he gets shocked he makes a break for it, severely hindered by the shackles clasped around his ankles.

The crew can only watch as the boy dashes out of the back area and into the alleyway beyond it. Sparing glances at each other before the run after him.

* * *

Even after five years away from this place the streets and layout come to him the further along he goes. He sticks to the back alleys to avoid detection and goes to the one place he knows he can always feel safe. Every now and than he has to cross a main street, but as long as he goes slowly and carries something with him, no one pays him any mind.

He has lost all sense of time during his imprisonment but as the sun sets over the city walls, he finally reaches his destination. He stops and stares at the building and his heart nearly breaks in two at the sight of all the condemning posters that decorate it, curtesy of the empire. The door and windows are boarded up, and there seems to be no way to enter. Looking around before he tries anything, he reaches up and yanks boards off, just so there is enough room to slip underneath, only to find the inside is in worse condition.

décor and furniture is overturned or destroyed, as though searching for something. he steps lightly on hardened feet to avoid any glass or metal, slowly picking his way through the debris and up the steps. He quickly checks the room the looked as though it belonged to a small child once upon a time. There are clothes thrown on the floor and drawers tossed aside. The mattress is over turned and a plush pokes out from underneath. The boy lifts the mattress and pulls out an orange loth cat plush, that was once well loved. With the plush in hand he picks his way to the next room over to see it in a similar state as the other room, only with a bigger bed and clothes for adults.

He makes his way to the bed and sets the old plush on the bedside table before getting to work.

The boy tries to ignore the layout of the room to the best of his ability and flips the bed back over onto the frame, and arranges pillows, blankets, and clothes in the form of a man and woman. Once the forms are recognizable as adults, he gets in between them and closes his eyes, hoping that when he opens them next, he'll find that the last seven years were just a dream.

Completely unaware of the yellow light flashing on the collar.

* * *

The crew could only stand still as the slave ran away at the sight of Chopper. A few seconds pass before they can completely register what happened.

Kanan could sense the fear radiating off the boy, couldn't react fast enough to prevent him from running. At first he thinks on using the force to search for him, but thinks against is at the imperial presence in the city. So they settle for questioning the handler on the matter which he brings up a tracker function set within the collars.

At first Kanan is skeptical of pressing anything on the remote, but upon activating the tracker function a small holo activates showing a map of the area. A green dot appears in their location while a yellow one appears in a blank lot.

The crew picks their way through the crowds until the come across the location where the boy's collar is giving off the signal, only to see that it is occupied by a empire condemned building. Sabine slips into the opening that the boy made from before, while Zeb takes off another board to allow the rest through. They leave Chopper outside, seeing how he was what scared the boy away in the first place.

The crew searches the building for the boy. Sabine looks at the broken holos to see if any work. Some do to display a cracked image of a family. Practically a representation of what truly happened to the once happy family. Zeb meanwhile decides to wait outside instead of being reminded of what the empire took from him.

Hera searches the first floor after seeing one of the better holos of the family and seeing the name Ezra Bridger on the inside cover of a torn school book.

Kanan meanwhile heads up the stairs. He skips the first room and instead heads to the second. Inside he finds the boy curled up in what he assumes is just a mound of pillows, blankets, and clothes. Approaching the bed he first takes notice that they are actually assembled to look like a man and wife. Seeing the boy curled up between the figures, he can only assume he tried to recreate his parents from what fleeting memory he has of them.

He gives a sad smile at the image set before him, and sits on the edge. The boy stirs slightly but settles back down. Kanan brushes the boys hair to the side and his smile grows as he leans into the touch, a look of content gracing his dirt coated face, making the future seem all the brighter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah bit of foreshadowing in the beginning there, but I hope you guys liked the end.


	3. Freedom?

_The hand carding through his hair fills him with warmth. he wants to turn, to open his eyes and see who is offering him comfort. He recalls resting in his parents bed, so pair that with the masculine hand, he can only assume it's his father. The petting motion nearly sends him back to sleep when the hand begins to change._

_The fingers grow slender and shift to a more feminine shape. The hand feels callused with years of wear and tear. Much different than the well built hands of his father, or the smooth ones of his mother. Opening his eyes, he is met with a dark room of what can only be described as a shack. The one rubbing his head is a teenage Twi'lek with pink skin and tight brown clothing and leather wrappings on her lekku. Her shirt is a light brown tunic with short sleeves and tearing at the hems. The shorts are dark brown that changes to wrappings around her shins._

_Above her is another Twi'lek with blue skin and the same color scheme outfit only with the wrappings on her arms and a loose pair of pants. The blue one opens their mouth, but no words come out. The same happens with the pink one, and the darkness of the room spreads from the corners onto the walls and floors When it reaches the two females, they disappear as well._

_Ezra tries to claw at the darkness, but it continues to take over his form. It starts from his feet, and moves upwards. When it closes around his neck, it feels as though he is suffocating. It reaches his face and begins to block out what is left of his vision._

* * *

Hera and Sabine take notice of Kanan's absence, and look towards the stairs. That was the last place he went, and the only place he could be. The two let Zeb and Chopper know what's going on, and make their ways upstairs. The sight of the young boys room is saddening, but the room of the parents is even more so.

Upon entering the room, they see Kanan sitting on the edge of the bed, carding his hand through the boys hair. Clutched in the boys arms they see a small Loth-cat toy. Spying the fabric on the bed they see that the boy tried to bring the pieces of his past back together. The hand going through his hair seems to bring him comfort, until he tenses and shifts.

They think that's it until he begins to writhe about as though in pain, sending the toy flying across the room. Clawing at his body as though he is trying to get something off of his body. He places his hand around his neck and after a bit more he wakes with a strangled cry and looks at the people surrounding him. As soon as his eyes land on the three tears well up in his eyes, and he curls up in a miserable little ball and cries.

The three crew members can do nothing to comfort him, as every time someone touches him in a comforting manner him flinches and curls in tighter. After a few minutes of this he finally uncurls, and sits up, arms wrapping around his knees. "I-I'm sorry sir."

"For what kid?" Kanan asks

"For running off, for leaving when you didn't allow it sir."

Kanan ignores the flinch and places a hand on the boys shoulder. "It's Ok. Now lets get out of here, and finish shopping." Before they leave however, Hera holds out one of the school books to the boy and asks, "Is this yours?" She receives a nod. "Is your name Ezra than?" another nod. "Is it ok if we call you that?"

"You can call me what ever you want miss." and with that he stands up and exits the room. If it weren't for the tear tracks staining his face, no one would be able to tell anything happened. Zeb and Chopper see him crawl out from between the boards, where he freezes when he sees Chopper again. He inches away from the door to allow the others through, but otherwise doesn't move. Hera, Sabine and Kanan join them shortly after to see Ezra with his back pressed against the wall. His eyes are wide and staring at Chopper. Hera blocks the droid from view, and is rewarded with a slightly relaxed stance.

"What now sir?" Ezra asks looking straight at Kanan. "Well first you can learn our names, than we need to finish shopping." Ezra nods

"So I'm Kanan, The Twi'lek and pilot of our ship is Hera, The colorful Mandolorian is Sabine, Zeb is the Lasat, and the astromech is Chopper." Ezra offers nothing more than a nod to signify he understands, with that the crew makes their way back through the market with Ezra keeping his distance from the droid and managing to keep up with the ankle shackles. As they get their shopping done some of the town folk would look their way, with familiarity as well as pity in their eyes. They finally reach the Ghost just as the moon sets over the horizon. Ezra with his own heavy load even with the reluctance of the crew.

The crew just sets everything in the cargo hold, and are about to head to their own rooms when they realize that Ezra doesn't have a place on the ship yet. They look back at the boy as he begins to organize the haul, putting ship parts in one area and necessities in another.

"So, what should we do with him while we get our job done tomorrow?" Zeb inquires.

"He can stay on the ship with me, and you three can get the job done." Hera informs and moves towards Ezra, gently placing a hand on his shoulder ignoring the flinch. "Come on, let's get you to bed."

"With all due respect Miss, I'd rather not get in trouble." He says and is about to get back to organizing when Kanan copies Hera's action. "Let's do what the captain said." Ezra nods after seeing who said that and follows him into the lounge. Kanan has him sit done on the couch set against the wall, and pulls out the remote. Ezra sees it and expects the usual pain, closing his eyes in anticipation. Instead he is greeted by a cool breeze and a weight off his shoulders. He opens his eyes to see Kanan holding it in his hands and a set of lock picks in his other hand. "Now let's see what we can do about those shackles."

Ezra bites his lip, but complies and holds out his wrists. Kanan makes tries to make quick work of the shackles and tosses them into a corner when he finishes. He than gets to work on the ones at his ankles and notices the differences in weight/texture. Ezra seems to recognize the gaze and calmly lifts up a pant leg revealing a crudely made prosthetic. Kanan stares at the limb and tries to hold back bile as he asks "What happened there?"

Ezra doesn't answer and instead his mind goes somewhere else.

_I don't know how long I've been here, all I know is that I have suffered what feels like years of mental and physical damage. The two Twi'leks that I've meet upon awakening that first day, where they told me that it will all be OK, but something tells me that's not true. They introduced themselves as Aola and Oola._

_Oola has light blue skin with misty markings on her lekku. Her eyes are a sea foam green that don't seem to focus on anything. She wears a simple light brown tunic with dark brown leggings a bandanna is tied back at the base of her skull and hangs loosely over her lekku. Like all slaves she has a shock collar, but unlike most she doesn't let it bother her._

_Aola, who held me in a seated position that first day has pink skin with dulled down markings. is the same only the top is cut short to show her midriff and she wears a looser pair of pants. She has leather bindings around her lekku, and is bothered by the collar, evident with the way she messes with it repeatedly_

_"Come on time to get to work." Oola says only moving to hold out her hand to me. I take it and lead her to the common area, where we retrieve our assignments for the day. I remember learning the schedule of the handlers, and an opening just presented itself. I let go of Oola's hand and ignore her shouts as I run down the next hallway. I go down the next few hallways and just make it past the doors when a burning sensation comes from the collar around my neck._

_I continue writing on the ground until someone grabs my ankle and drags me back into the door. Whoever is pulling me doesn't stop there and continues long after I go unconscious._

_The next time I wake up is to an immense amount of pain. I jolt up and reach for the leg that is burning, only to fall sort just above the knee. A bandage is wrapped crudely around the appendage, and someone sits down next to me placing a hand around my shoulder. "It's OK, It's Ok. Don't focus on the pain, focus on breathing." I try to do as she says when a second hand joins the first is rubbing calming circles on my back. Both forms of comfort stop when the door opens. I look up to see one of the handlers glaring and moving his eyes around the room at the others._

_"Let this be a lesson to all of you. No one escapes." All I know is black after that._

A hand placed on his shoulder snaps him out of it. Looking up he meets the concerned gaze of Kanan, who is still hoping for an answer.

Ezra takes a deep breath, going to risk something now that the collar is off. "I'm sorry."

"Too soon?" He asks, and as Ezra nods Kanan just places a hand on Ezra's head and ruffles his hair. "I'll listen when you're ready, so no rush."

Ezra just dumbly nods as the ankle shackles are removed, and a set of blankets and pillows are thrown his way from the door. He struggles out of the blinding fabric to see more being thrown about out in the hallway. Zeb comes into view and roars after Chopper. "Try to get some sleep, and I'll handle those idiots." Again Ezra nods but stays where he is. listening to the shouts and yells.

He decides to lay back and try to accomplish what he was told, and soon he is out like a light. the unfamiliar sounds of the ship lulling him to sleep. Which makes it easier for a late night visitor to move the blanket to cover his shoulders.


	4. The First Assignment

The process of waking up is a trial all on its own. The surface he is on is comfortable, and the covering over him is warm. The surface jolts and Ezra sits up in an unfamiliar place. The walls are metallic with a table in front of him. he recognizes the area as a sort of lounge.

He sits there in thought until the previous day comes to mind. He gets up and the cold rushes through his bare foot to the rest of his nervous system. He exits the room to enter a hallway, doors on either side including the one he was just in. A noise at the end of the hall alerts him of someone else and he does the only thing he can. He moves towards disturbance, ignoring the humming coming from the second room on his right.

Upon entering the cockpit he sees the Twi'lek sitting the pilot's chair. The droid from before charging in the corner. Hera hears the sound of two distinct footsteps and looks to see only Ezra. She offers a smile and pats the seat next to her. "How did you sleep Ezra?"

"Fine." he replies with a shrug of his shoulders. Hera nods, and moves to stand up, "Well we got some time before the others show up, lets have something to eat and get you into some new clothes, hmm." She holds out a hand to the youth. Ezra takes a moment to study the rags he has been forced to call clothing, and the empty hole he calls a stomach. After a few seconds he stands up and nods, but doesn't take Hera's hand. Hera is saddened by this but continues smiling as she leads him back to the room he first woke up in. After sitting him down on the bench she moves towards the fridge and pulls out some fruit, knowing that anymore will not be good for the boy. "Here, I'm going to find some clothes that will hopefully fit you." and with that she leaves Ezra alone with the Meiloorun.

Ezra stares at the fruit in hand and studies how the colors shift like the sunset. The small barbs are dull and cause no pain. He takes a bite and nearly chokes and the sweet flavor and juices sliding down his throat. By the time Hera returns to the galley Ezra has finished the fruit with juices staining the sides of his mouth and hands. She sets the clothes down on a nearby seat, before wetting a washcloth and wiping away the juices as well as the dirt. Seeing the difference, she smiles and says, "Let's get you cleaned up before you change."

She leads him to the fresher and shows him how it works. Leaving Ezra alone to get cleaned up. In the meantime she contacts the rest of the crew. "Specter 2 to Specter 1, how's the supply run going?"

"Just fine if out don't count the Storm Troopers, how's the kid doing?"

"Good, I got him to eat something as well as some clothes that should fit him until we get something better. But right now he's in the fresher getting cleaned up."

"Where'd you find the clothes?" Sabine asks from her end of the frequency.

"In the laundry room, and Kanan, they're yours."

"They had better be the ones that don't fit anymore."

"Can we just focus on the mission at hand." Zeb cuts in along with blaster fire.

"Yeah, Specters 1, 4, and 5 out." Kanan says and the transmission is cut. Hera leans back into her seat when Chopper disengages himself from the wall, and inquires something in binary.

"Yeah Chopper the kid's up, he's just getting cleaned, and don't bother him unless necessary."

The droid just grumbles and goes about his business. Moments later the shower stops and Ezra steps out cleaner than he's been in years, and in a pair of shrunken clothes that still hang off his lithe form. The long sleeves of the green shirt hang over his hands and the legs of the grey pants are rolled up to show bare feet. His hair hangs in his face due to the weight added by the water. He makes his way back towards the cockpit when the same tingling sensation enters his head. He looks to the right to see the same door it came from before. He tries to open the door, but when that fails goes back to doing what he was before. Heading to the cockpit.

Hera smiles when she sees the former slave clean and in better clothes than before. taking notice of his hair she leaves for the lounge, gesturing for Ezra to follow. She has Ezra sit on one of the stools and begins cutting his hair. She begins in the back and cuts it where it stops at his shoulders. As she goes around she starts to go higher, until finally he can see without a mane of hair in his way. Hera stands in front of the boy studying her work when the lower doors open and the crew loads the cargo.

Hera slides down the ladder with practiced ease, while Ezra goes down slowly. Once Kanan sees the cleaned up version of Ezra he approaches the former slave and places his hand on Ezra's head. Still expecting pain from sudden gestures Ezra flinches only to feel a gentle rubbing motion. "I knew there was a kid underneath all that dirt." Ezra is about to reply when the ship is tossed about.

"Kanan What the heck is going on?" Hera demands as she heads to the cockpit, Kanan following close behind. The three left behind stand where they are left and Ezra holds himself in a guarding manner. As Hera flies the ship takes a hard hit and Ezra tries to move out of the way only to get pinned down by Zeb. He doesn't say anything as he tries to get out from underneath the Lasat. Zeb only just manages to get on his hands and knees when Ezra crawls away and all but locks himself in the nearby closet space.

"Ezra, you OK in there?" Sabine asks through the door only to receive silence. Zeb goes to open the door when Kanan's voice sounds through the intercom system. "What happened to Ezra?"

"Well you see, when the ship got hit I fell on him, and the first chance he got he hid in...Here." Zeb answers as he opens the door only to find an opened vent. Above them they hear shuffling in the vent. "Don't worry Kanan, he's still in the ship." Sabine supplies

* * *

As Ezra travels through the vent all that goes through his head is to get somewhere safe. Remember the two years spent on the street and get somewhere safe. He hits a wall and climbs up a bit before leveling out again. Outside he hears what sounds like gun fight which only propels him faster. A humming enters his head and Ezra stops to listen to it. The hum is the same one that came when he saw Kanan for the first time, as well as when he passes that one room. A little too late Ezra realizes he lingered too long as the vent gives out beneath him and deposits him on the floor a good 8ft below him. Wincing at the rough landing he looks around at the room to see it sporting little more than a bunk, round chair, and shelves.

He is about to exit the room not wanting the owner to find him when the humming comes once again directing him towards the bunk. He sits down and tries to focus. The blasts and shifting of the ship distracting until he realizes that the humming is coming from a drawer beneath the bed, and it reveals a golden cube with white details and a sphere of glass in the middle. He studies the cube, and all else fades away into a content feeling. As though nothing ever happened, and his parents are still there to welcome him home. Ezra's mind continues to wander to the happier moments, only to stop as the corners of the cube turn and the thing floats out of his hand. The corners disconnect leaving a fourteen sided shape floating in the center. A light in emitted and a hologram of a male with trimmed hair and beard appears in a robe. A moment of silence is shortly followed by a message.

_"This is Master Obi'Wan Kenobi. I regret to report that both our Jedi Order and the Republic have fallen, with the dark shadow of the Empire raising to take their place. This message is warning and a reminder for any surviving Jedi, Trust in the Force. Do not return to the temple, that time has passed, and our future is uncertain. We will each be challenged, our trust, our faith, our friendships, but we must perceiver. And in time a new hope will emerge. May the Force be with you, always."_

When the message ends the corners return to the center, but they don't turn to their proper positions as it falls to the floor. Ezra picks up the shape and tries to forcefully move the corners back, when that doesn't work, he returns it to the drawer as is. Leaving the room and entering an empty hallway. He heads to the main sitting area to see everyone but Hera there. Kanan grabs his shoulder and out of the yet broken habit Ezra flinches as he apologizes. "I'm sorry for running away again."

"Kid as far as I'm concerned you didn't run away, you just wanted to feel safe." and he ruffles Ezra hair once again. "Come on I want to show you something." and with that he leads him to the cockpit where the stars are prominent. "Thought you'd like a good look at the stars before we land again."

he has Ezra sit down in the copilot's chair. When they approach Lothal he is surprised to see how small it looks from the void of space. "I've traveled through space plenty of times, but it was always from a windowless cell or container."

He is so focused on the stars that he barely notices Hera or Kanan leave. A few minutes pass before Hera comes back and sits in her chair with a cup of caf. "If you want you can stay here and relax? Or help Sabine and Zeb." The second one is spoken a few seconds after the first, as though she didn't want to ask him in the first place. "I'll help."

With that the two head down to the lower platform where six crates sit, and the hanger door hangs opened. They have Ezra push one of the orange crates with Sabine and Zeb, while Hera and Kanan take the dark grey ones. As the three push the crates towards the small town He sees a scene all to familiar to him. People sitting or standing near lean-tos wearing the only clothes they probably have available. Multiple races staring at nothing awaiting their fate. Sabine and Zeb guide him to the middle of the ''Town'' and open the crates to reveal food. Once both crates are opened Zeb holds out his arms and yells out "Who wants free grub?"

The citizens flock to the three at hearing this and only take one fruit each while saying thank you over and over. A Rhodinian takes one from Ezra's crate, and before leaving places a hand on his shoulder, "Thank you, thank you so much."

Ezra looks down in confusion, not knowing how to act with being thanked for the first time in his years of being a slave. Once the crates are emptied the three meet up with Hera and Kanan. "Come on, we have a job to do."


	5. 2 steps forwards, 1 step back

Ezra sits in the chair next to Hera's, The rest of the crew has tried to impersonate Zeb as a hairless Wookie. Only for Zeb to get impatient like always, and knock the two troopers at the airlock unconscious. "May I ask how this is going to work again?"

"Just wait, if they need us, we'll assist them. For now however we are on hold for a get-away."

Ezra nods as a transmission comes in from Kanan, "No Troopers, securities sof-bzzt." When the transmission goes to static Hera messes with the controls to get the signal back as she tries to get any to respond. "What happened?"

"Ugh, comms down." When the words leave Hera's mouth, Ezra knows that's not right. A feeling similar to the one he got earlier comes again, only this time colder, foreboding even. "No not down, Jammed."

The feeling gets stronger and all Ezra can say is "Somethings coming." in a whispered breath. He looks to the large window just as a large ship exits hyperspace. and slowly approaches the two conjoined ships. "What is that?" He asks as he sinks further into the seat. "It's an imperial star destroyer. From the looks of things, this was a setup."

The ship looms over head with the docking bay approaching. "What do we do?"

"Ezra I need you to go warn the others about the trap, and get them back to the ship as quickly as possible."

His jaw clenches and with a stiff nod exits the ship and moves towards the others.

he's not sure how, but he somehow manages to reach Kanan and Zeb just as their about to short circuit the lock mechanism. "Don't! It's a trap!"

"Kid you're going to blow our cover." Zeb growls, and Ezra flinches back at the tone, but repeats himself in a submissive tone. "It's a trap, they have a ship coming to pick us up, and something worse than death may happen." As soon as those words leave his mouth the door they were just trying to sabotage opens to reveal Storm Troopers. Kanan pushes Ezra forward as Zeb knocks the troopers back. "We need to get Sabine and... Chopper, Where are they?" Ezra asks stalling on the droids name.

"It's OK, their just doing their part of the plan. We just need to get to the rendezvous point." Ezra wants to argue, but doesn't want to risk his luck any further than he has. So he nods and continues running, not expecting the command that comes from Kanan as Troopers move to head them off. "Push off, now!" Being used to being ordered around he jumps up just as the lights go yellow and everything not welded or tied down is lifted off the ground.

He follows Kanan's movements to the best of his abilities, but opts to just grab onto Zeb to keep up. "How you holding up kid?"

"Fine." Is his quick answer, as Zeb shakes him off. Kanan yells out now just as the gravity is reinstated, and Ezra nearly faceplants on the hard durasteel floor. It takes a moment to get back up, but Kanan, Sabine, and Chopper are already boarding the ship. Zeb hangs back as the kid picks himself up, and once sure the kid is standing follows the rest. Ezra barely takes a step forwards before an armored arm warps around his neck.

Zeb hears the grunt and looks to see Kallus holding the kid in a headlock with Storm Troopers firing on either side. "Let go."

"Kid get out of the way!"

"I'm trying." And Zeb can both hear and see the struggle the young male is putting up. From the level of wriggling to clawing at the agent's arms to the grunts he lets loose. Zeb tries to get a clear hit on the Agent, but knows no matter how he fires, the kid could get hurt. "I'm sorry kid."

The look of hurt crosses the kids face. "You did good." and with that Zeb closes the airlock and slides down to the floor. The look of heartbreak fresh in his mind. "I'm sorry kid."

* * *

Ezra is lead through the complex to a small holding cell where all he can do is sit and wait for his fate. The room is bare of all things except for the bench he sits on. The room reminds him of the solitary cells used for rowdy slaves, and he has been in plenty to know the difference. Where the solitary confinement cells are usually made of wood or smell of bodily fluids. This cell is cleaned and void of any color variation. Another big difference is the bench, slave weren't good enough for those.

Outside the cell he hears the all too familiar sound of approaching footsteps, and when the cell door opens he sees the agent that grabbed him. Ezra simply stares at the man awaiting his sentence. "I am Agent Kallus of the Imperial Security Bureau, and you are?"

Ezra looks down, "Nobody sir."

When Ezra looks down, Kallus is drawn to the burns on his neck and the way he holds his wrists in comfort tells him there might be injuries there as well. "I believe I remember someone saying they saw the Rebels buy a slave, and judging by those marks on your wrists and neck, that would be you."

Ezra replies with a soft "Yes sir."

"Seeing how they own you than, they will come back for you, and that is when we will capture them."

"They won't come for me sir. They didn't pay that much for me, and their probably happy I'm gone." Agent Kallus goes to set a hand on the boys shoulder in comfort, but retreats when he see him flinch. He calls out to the troopers outside the door. "Search him, and get he prepared for the fastest shuttle to Kessel."

For the first time in a long time Ezra feels true terror at the name of the planet. Seeing how he is a slave, his true destination are the spice mines located on the planet. He remembers hearing the name spoken as a threat to other slaves. The handlers would say they would leave them there for a few months, and then retrieve them. All slaves that went there, never came back, those that did passed shortly after. The handlers would than force the other slaves to dig the graves and bury what was once a good friend.

He remains still for the search, and when they leave to go grab what he can only assume are cuffs, Ezra sits on the bench awaiting their return, wishing for nothing more than to have a simple tool he had before his life changed. When the troopers return with the cuffs, Ezra holds out his wrists as the cuffs are secured, wincing as the familiar weight pulls his arms down.

"Get moving kid, and if you're lucky you'll last longer than the Wookies." Ezra perks up at that. "The Wookies are on Kessel?"

"And what if they are, There's no way for you to get to them." Ezra looks down is acknowledgement, knowing they were right.

* * *

**Back with crew after botched mission**

* * *

Zeb makes his way to the cockpit hearing the words of praise they were saying about someone who was no longer there. Upon reaching the area he sits in the chair right behind Hera and wraps his arms around his chest, the shame eating at him. "The kid did all right." Sabine acknowledges

"That he did, Zeb where is he anyway?" Kanan asks. Zeb tries to stall with "I thought he was with you." Everyone looks at him, even Chopper.

"Zeb what did you do?" Sabine asks.

"I didn't do anything! An ISB agent grabbed on our way out." He says, looking down in regret.

"Garazeb Orrelios!" Hera yells at him "What did you want me to do?! Shoot first and worry about the kid later? If I had taken the shot, there was no guarantee that the kid would go unharmed. He's young, they'll go easy on him."

"There's no guarantee, he still has his scars from his years spent as a slave. If they see those, they may go back to treating him as such." Hera points out. "I say we go back for him."

"We can't, they'll be expecting us and set a trap." Sabine points out, and the crew settles into silence until chopper chimes in. "&&%**%"

"Choppers with me, so it's two against two. Kanan you're the deciding vote." All four look to the Jedi awaiting his decision. "We go back for him, I don't care how we acquired him, but he's my responsibility." Hera nods with a smile and begins to backtrack. While she does that Kanan returns to his quarters to meditate, and think of a plan to get the boy back. He sits on the bed and closes his eyes when he feels the familiar presence of the Force call to him. Opening his eyes, he leans down to open the draw to see the Holocron has been opened.

Kanan can do little more than stare at the simple yet complex object, and think about who could have opened it. Sabine, Zeb, and Hera know not to enter his room without permission, and he was sure he would have felt them by now. Chopper is just a droid, so that leaves him out. Kanan himself always closes it when he is done, so that any force sensitive found can have a chance to open it. So who- Kanan stops and his mind jumps to Ezra. When he first saw the slave on stage, and the force almost forcing him to look at him. As that thought occurs, he remembers in the early blaster fire how he had crawled into the vents to perhaps feel safer. Did the boy somehow wind up in his room? It's with this thought in mind that he leaves the room and goes back up to the cockpit, where he only finds Hera.

"Where are the other three?"

"Sabine and Zeb are sulking in the galley, and Chopper is most likely scolding them, why?" Kanan doesn't answer and instead hands her the Holocron. "It's opened, so?"

"It was closed last time I checked."

"And? get to the point love."

"I think the kid might have gotten into my room from the vents, and he opened it."

"Only one way to find out." Hera says as they approach the Starfighter that they just left moments ago. Hera manages to dock in the lower bay silently, and hangs back by the ship as the other three exit. "Find Ezra, Chopper and I will hang back and watch the ship." The three nod, and while Sabine adds some of her artwork to the floor before quickly following after the rest.

They run into the hallway, and Kanan glances back at the Lasat. "Hold this bay until we get back."

"And this time make sure everyone gets on board." Sabine adds before the two leave Zeb at the entrance. They don't get that far as the sound of in sync footsteps, and another that lags behind approaches the hall. The three hold their guns in front of them ready to fire as from around the corner Ezra appears in a pair of cuffs. The young male looks up when he senses the sets of eyes on him, and is about to say something when the Troopers appear and spot the trio as well. One of the armored pair pushes Ezra down and begins firing. The other doing so before hand. The trio dodges behind the sides of the airlocks and return fire.

Ezra through it all remained still, not sure if what he was seeing is true. He decides that it's the truth as both of his escorts are shot down and Zeb all but throws him over his shoulder like a sack of vegetables. Ezra wants to point out that he can walk, but decides against it as more troopers come down the hallway, including Agent Kallus. Kanan stalls for a bit on the platform while Sabine yells up to Hera to get them out of there.

Ezra is set down on one of the benches in the main room, and Zeb works to get the cuffs off. He growls in frustration, and plans to break the cuffs with brute strength, but decides against it when he studies the chaffing on the boy wrists. just sits there and allows the Lasat to move his limbs as he deems necessary. Zeb leaves for a bit and returns with Chopper. Ezra all but shakes as the droid approaches, revealing an all too familiar tool from the wide array it has at its disposal

Zeb knows how Ezra reacts around the old astromech, but is glad when the boy holds still long enough for Chopper to work. Once the cuffs are removed Chopper rolls away with the cuffs and Zeb moves to go to his own room when Ezra pulls the Lasant's attention back towards himself. "Do you know where Kessel is?"

"Yeah, it's usually where the imperials send pri..." A look of shock crosses his face and he moves down the hall that will take him to the cockpit. Ezra remains where he is and tries to think about what that reaction could mean for him in the long run. The look itself was not directed at him and appeared far off. Not wanting to be surprised with anything, Ezra gets up and follows Zeb to the cockpit, where everyone is sitting, and discussing what to do about the Wookies. Sabine is the one to take notice of Ezra's entrance and asks "how you holding up Ezra?"

"I'm fine."

Kanan gives the boy a flat look. "You see, when you say that I don't necessarily believe you."

"better than some days, worse than most." he replies with a shrug, while simultaneously wrapping his arms around his chest.

"Ezra." Hera says and for the first time in a long time Ezra gets defensive. "What do you want me to say. That I was scared? I'm only just getting to know all of you, and I have bad experiences with being truthful. If I were to say that around anyone else, I would have gotten beaten, and still be expected to work as though I weren't in pain. I'm still learning how to act around all of you, and it takes more than two days, one of which was ruined, to fix more than seven years."

The crew is shocked by the former slaves words, and Ezra seems to finally get around to understanding what he said and retreats, hiding in the closet in the main room. Trying to seek solace within the confined space and silence. Not even a few seconds pass before footsteps alert him of someone else being in the room. Ezra hunkers down tighter in on himself as the steps get closer, when the door opens he barely manages to hold back a whimper.

He curls into his miserable little ball tighter and doesn't know what to expect. he hates it when it gets like this, never knowing what to expect, always waiting for whatever to happen to happen. He's used to the pain, of the 'punishments', not the gentle gestures and caring glances.

Ezra risks a glance up and that is when Kanan wraps his arms around the youth. Ezra tries to push the man away, but just doesn't have the strength. "It's OK kid, just let it all out." Ezra doesn't understand what he is talking about at first, but than the tears come, and he cries for the last seven or so years of his life, wrapping his arms around the warmth in front of him and clenches the mans shirt in his hands. A few minutes pass like that until he passes out due to exhaustion. Kanan simple picks the youth up and lays him down on the bench, covering his small frame with a blanket. "Rest well kid." With that he dims down the lights and heads back to the cockpit, but not before spying a hesitant smile grace the kids face.


	6. A Slaves Hell

_Ezra is about ten now, and has only been a slave for little under a year. Oola and Aola have been like surrogate sisters to the young boy, and practically made it their duty to show him the ropes. Ezra can do little more than watch as many of the slaves come and go, only a few stay for years, such as the new ones or trainers. the Twi'lek twins are some such trainers, showing others of their race as well as those graceful enough how to be entertainers or other such things. The other one is a female lasat that goes by Xylina._

_The female is large with misty purple fur, light underbelly, and violet stripes along her back and arms along with fringes on top of her head and to the sides in front of her ears. Some spots of fur grow against the rest revealing evidence of scars. Her outfit consist of little more than fabric wrapped around her chest for a top, and separate pieces of rags sewn together to form a skirt. Like all other slaves she wears a shock collar, and the area around it is covered in singed fur._

_Like the two Twi'leks she trains the slaves in their tasks, only her teachings are for the more menial tasks from carrying objects to cleaning. Unlike the two however she takes the punishment of those she teaches for the first few years they train under her. It was originally another's task, but once they passed on, she took it over._

_The one who first came up with the method was a male who came with his younger sister. The male didn't want to see his little sister hurt and so begged to take all her punishments after she dropped and broke some plates. The handlers noticed the difference in the sisters work improved after the beating, and had the male take the punishment for all of the younglings in his sisters age group. He did not last long, and the slavers passed on that duty to another. They went through five slaves like that before Xylina took over the task. It was through this that Ezra, along with the other younglings learned the horrors of Kessel._

_Each slave was given ten chances at the beginning of their servitude. A_ _s soon as those ten were used up, said slave would go to Kessel, the length of their stay dependent on what the slave did. Normally, the one to take the hit of the other slaves would forgo that punishment. Xylina decided to be the first to take that punishment when one of the other younglings missed a few days of work due to illness, and broke some objects when not being up to pare in their health._

_It was during the few years of absence of Xylina that Ezra attempted an escape, and it was shortly after he was given a crudely made prosthetic that she returned. He remembers the proud Lasat, body made of little more than lean muscle, towering over the lot of them like a shield, blocking them from the pain of the world. Talking about a friend she scarcely remembers, only the nickname of Gar-O she called him just to tick him off, as well as the fact that she wanted to have kits of her own someday. The female in front of him is little more than a shadow of her former self._

_Her fur is pale, and the muscles that once made up her stature is mainly gone, leaving her thin and gangly. Once she sees the kids again after the three years of absence tears spring forth and she all but collapses on them, trying to envelop every one in a hug. She reprimands Ezra for trying the escape, and all but cries over the loss of one of her kit's leg._

_After awhile Xylina was finally able to work up the nerve to describe what hell looked like._

And that is what Ezra looked at presently. The planet was covered in a think brown smog from all of the mining going on. debris floats just outside of the fine dust. The Ghost breaks through the smog and approaches a landing platform where Storm Troopers herd a group of Wookies to the mines. Chopper runs the guns, while the crew waits in the hanger.

Zeb looks to the kid, and in a joking manner says, "Try not to get dead. I don't want to drag your body out." Truth be told he doesn't want to deal with the shame of losing someone else after he just started trusting them.

Ezra holds an old droid part close to his chest, in a form of comfort as he says. "Don't worry about me, worse has happened." and he turns away, failing to see the look of hurt cross the Lasat's face.

Ezra stands in wait, not sure how this will turn out, but willing to do his part to free the prisoners. As soon as the doors open, The four are fired upon as soon as the troopers get the chance, and the rebels are quick to duck behind some crates. Zeb, Kanan, and Sabine stay busy distracting the Troopers, Ezra waits before moving around the crates and moves towards the set closest to the Wookies.

Peering over the crates to check that the focus of the troopers are still on the three crew members before crawling over and towards the furry giants. The Wookies take notice of the boy, and at first think he is with the imperials. "It's Ok, I'm just trying to help you guys." He supplies as he holds up the part. The Wookies share a quick glance between themselves and than move towards the boy holding out their cuffs. Ezra smiles as he gets to work, and after half are freed they attack the troopers from behind.

Ezra hangs back while this happens, and notices as the youngest Wookie hides behind some crates before Ezra has a chance to free him. Ezra follows him as imperial reinforcements arrive, including an Agent Kallus. So there he is, hiding behind some crates with a young wookie on the wrong side of the field yet again. Before Ezra can stop him, the Wookie, or Kitwarr, peeks over the top of the crates, and is noticed by one of the troopers, who alerts Kallus, who than proceeds to chase the two. Not before giving an order as Ezra sees Kanan pull out a small device from his belt.

* * *

Zeb is the first to notice the missing slave, and can just barely see him disappear around a corner. Remembering the words spoken before he can't help but to think about the kids past life. He looks at the father hanging off his shoulder, calling and reaching out to their child, and wants to repeat the motion out to the kid. Kanan glances back at the Lasat from where he is deflecting blaster shots. "Where'd the kid go?"

"He's doing something you would do." Zeb tosses back irritated as he gets the wookie into the container for a 22 pick-up. Hating being jostled around inside the container, and not knowing what the kid is doing.

* * *

Ezra manages to catch up with Kitwarr just as he reaches a dead end. He holds up the droid part and in a calm but quivering voice says "Hey it's OK, I'm only trying to help you."

The young Wookie seems to get what Ezra was trying to do and slowly approaches him. Ezra makes quick work of the cuffs and tosses them over the side. He turns back to the Wookie and quickly glances over it for any injuries. Not finding any, he grabs their hand and makes to go back the way they came only to find it blocked by the agent who grabbed him back on the Star Destroyer. "It was rather foolish of you to come here boy, now lets see about getting you fitted in a new pair of cuffs." he says as he holds up a pair.

Ezra pushes Kitwar behind him, and tries to make himself as big as he can, when all he wants to do is cower away. Kallus aims his blaster, with it set on stun, at the two when a different set of shots go off around him. Ezra jumps and looks to the left to see The Ghost hovering up besides the platform with Kanan on top of it.

"Come on Ezra, Jump! I'll catch you two!" Not one to disobey, Ezra grabs Kitwars hand and the two jump over the railing. The Kanan grabs onto their upper arms, and assists the two in getting onto the ship. Kanan leads them to the loading bay where all of the Wookies are gathered, upon seeing his father, Kitwar jumps up in glee and slides down the ladder.

Ezra smiles at the display, the adrenaline dissipating and from there feelings unknown yet familiar overwhelm him. His breaths come in short pants and black filters around his vision. The crew is saying good bye to the Wookies at the airlock, and no one is around to see Ezra slide down the wall, and clamp his hands over his ears, tears rolling down his cheeks, as voices filter through his head.

_'Why am I here?' COURIOUS_

_'How do I leave?' RESOLUTE_

_'Help ME!' FEAR_

_'I don't want to die.' EMPTINESS_

_'I miss my mom.' SADNESS_

_'I wonder how the kits are doing?' WORRY_

_'I need to get out of here.' DETERMINATION_

_'Please let me leave, I won't misbehave again.' DESPAIR_

_'I can't take this anymore.' PAIN_

_'Ezra?' CARING_

"Ezra are you OK?" He doesn't know how long its been, but he is now sitting on the bench in the galley with a very worried crew in front of him. Sabine sits on his right while Zeb occupies the space to the left. Kanan kneels in front of him, hand on his knees with Ezra's hands in his own. Hera stands in the doorway with Chopper slightly in front of her. All with a look that Ezra hasn't seen in seven years, worry. All four organic members have a variation of the expression on their face, and Ezra can do nothing, but sit and try to make sense of what they could be worried about. he removes one of his hands, bringing it to his face and whipping the tears away. "Sorry."

"Sweetie, you have nothing to be sorry for." Hera says as she moves from her spot on the wall. Ezra does little more than nod and keep his head down. Kanan studies the boys face, and places a hand on the youth's shoulder. "It's been a long day, why don't we have Zeb show you to your room."

Zeb gets up and waits for the kid to follow, when Ezra fails to get up, Zeb huffs and picks him up bridal style. Ezra tenses at the unfamiliar hold and remains as such even as he is deposited in the upper bunk of the cabin. Ezra can feel the ship flying off, and as they get further, the thoughts and feeling get quieter. Once all his thoughts are calm, he finally nods off, curling up in the blanket and making himself as small as he can.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ending sucked, but I'll make up for it in the next chapter... Hopefully. as for the italics at the end, those are the left over thoughts of those who have been to Kessel and have either: died or felt the emotion strongly.


	7. Figuring it Out

When Kanan woke up that morning and made his way to the main area, he was not expecting breakfast to be made or seeing Ezra on the floor and working on his old outfit. With needle and thread in hand, he sits crossed legged on the floor and works on getting the tears sewn up.

"What are you up to Ezra?" Kanan points out.

Ezra doesn't even look up from his task as he answers. "Fixing the tears so that I have something to wear."

Kanan says nothing and sits down and makes a plate of the food prepared. Sabine and Zeb join them, and see what Ezra is working on. "Isn't sewing a females job?" Sabine asks

"Yes, it is."

she looks like she is about to ask something else when Hera and Chopper enter from the cockpit. Hera takes one look at the stitch work and recognizes it.

"Where did you learn that?"

"Two Twi'Leks that went by the names of Aola and Oola, twins without a clan name. When they met me, they thought of me as a little brother, and I thought of them as sisters." He illiterates. "They were the ones to train the girls on how to be dancers as well as servers or house keepers among other tasks."

"What else? when you talk about them you almost seemed upset." Kanan points out, not yet bringing up the holocrom.

"Yes, how do they not have a clan name when every Twi'lek learns them at an early age."

Ezra stops, but doesn't look up. "They were born into slavery. Their parents died before they could learn what their clan name was."

Kanan notices the sad look on the boys face, and against his better judgement asks "You're missing something, What else?"

"They asked if they could be Bridgers." He says solemnly before he gets up and leaves.

The crew can only remain frozen at what the youngling said. The clothes he was working on are left on the floor. Nearly all the tears are fixed, leaving just the frayed hems of the pants that usually drag on the ground. The shirt on the other hand is completely fixed, but has the length of a tunic. Sabine studies the brown and dark beige clothes, before inspiration strikes and she grabs them from the floor and heads to her room. Kanan meanwhile goes to look for the boy, only to find him in his room on the floor with the holocrom.

Kanan just manages to catch the last of the message before it closes and drops back to the ground, that is when Ezra sees Kanan. "I'm sorry!" Ezra says as he jolts up.

"Where were you thoughts?" Kanan asks sitting on the floor, and stopping the boy from leaving with a held up hand.

"What?"

"What were you thinking of when that opened?" he reiterates.

Ezra stops to think of the question. What had he been thinking about? "I guess I was thinking about my family."

"What about them?"

Again Ezra needs to take a moment to think. "It wasn't so much my parents that I was thinking about, it was the other slaves. How the twins were there when I first woke up. How Xylina protected us and called everyone younger than her kit. Working with the twins at night so that it wasn't just the females they were teaching." As Ezra says these things tears well up in his eyes, wanting nothing more than for them to be here with him. And as more memories of the good time come to mind, Kanan sees for himself the Holocrom opening.

A moment of silence follows the repeated holo-message before Kanan asks "What made you come in here?"

"I don't know, I just had a feeling." Ezra says and continues before Kanan can say anything. "I got the same feeling when I saw you at the back of the crowd, it was like it was drawing me to you, it made me feel as though everything would be... OK, that I would be safe."

Kanan smiles at that. "Truth be told I get a similar feeling from you, only it seems like a missing piece returned." The two sit in silence, with the Holocrom in between them. Kanan huffs out a breath and stands, holding out a hand to the youth still seated on the floor. "Come on you must be hungry?"

"I'm fine." Ezra is quick to say.

"Not gonna hear it, now let's go." Ezra gives a quick nods and gets up, the left leg of his pants slightly bunches up to reveal a bit of the prosthetic. Seeing how it's a simple pole leg with foot shaped end, Kanan can only assume that the wound is below the knee with how Ezra can still bend it. They make their way back into the main room, and when Ezra doesn't see the clothes on the floor he flips. "Where are they?"

"Where's what?" Zeb asks from his spot at the table eating the breakfast prepared.

"My clothes, where are they? I wasn't done fixing them."

"Oh, Sabine took them." And with that Ezra dashes down the halls towards Sabine's room. He doesn't even knock before he enters the room to see Sabine standing with her hands on her hips in front of a pair of clothes died orange. The pants being darker than the shirt, while the shirt has a blue insignia on it. both are hanging over tubs where the access dye drips into them. Sabine hears the door open and looks to see Ezra standing there.

"Hey, I wanted to surprise you." She says and Ezra just stares. When the silence gets to be too much for Sabine she begins explaining what she did. "Ok, so I didn't mess with what you had already done, or attempt to fix the rest myself, but I just thought some color would be nice. I knew I had some orange dye that I thought would make your eyes pop. As I was dying I found the blue that matched your hair and added that on the shirt. Just so you know these-"

"Thank you." Ezra whispers, and Sabine turns upon hearing the slightly mumbled words.

"What was that Ezra?" She asks, and Ezra pushes past his discomfort of physical contact to pull her into a hug, once again whispering. "Thank you."

Sabine just stands frozen, just thinking about how small he feels, and the fact she can feel the bones in his arms. she thinks about returning the hug just as Ezra lets go. "Sorry for the hug, but seeing the color made me happy."

"How so?"

"Aola liked to think that I would look good in orange." he admits with little hesitation. And Sabine smiles at the fact that he is giving them such a look at his life before. Hera was worried that he would shut himself off from them after this morning. "Didn't you say she had a twin?"

"Yeah."

"What did she think?" Ezra merely shrugs and goes to inspect the dye job. The pants he notices is going to be a burnt orange type color. The shirt is done in sort of a gradation that shifts between a bright orange and yellow. The blue insignia in the center of the shirt is the same that is done on the upper corner of Sabine's chest plate. After a bit more of staring Ezra finally realizes that he all but burst into the room before and whips around to flash Sabine a look she can only describe a pure terror. Sabine reaches out a hand in a form of comfort, but Ezra sees it as an oncoming blow. Sabine stands still as Ezra ducks down and wraps his arms around his head, expecting a blow he was all too used to.

"Ezra, you ok?" she tries to ask in a calming voice, but the display of fear seconds before has her on edge.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Ezra repeats in a form of mantra as he slowly rocks himself on the balls of his feet. Sabine stands and watches the distressed youth try to comfort himself the only way he could for who knows how long. She hears the approach of footsteps, and judging from the quickening speech, Ezra does to. Kanan and Zeb look into the room just as Sabine comes to a decision and wraps her arms around the kid on the floor. Ezra tenses for a moment before excepting the hug and even returns it. Crying into her shoulder with what can only be years worth of tears. Sabine keeps her arms wrapped around Ezra until he is ready and lets go himself.

When he does The three crew members present can see the red eyes and tear tracks. Sabine keeps a hand on his shoulder and leads him to the main area, sitting him down and all but shoving a plate in front of him. He stares at her and looks back to the plate, it's a saddening sight to see the all but starved boy confused by the food.

"Come on kid eat up." Kanan says as he pushes the plate towards the malnourished boy. Ezra just pushes it away again, and looks towards the crew. "I'm not hungry." The growl that emanates from his stomach says other wise. Before anyone can say anything against that claim Ezra makes another. "I can wait."

The ghost crew only stands shock still, and can think of nothing to say. It's in this moment of silence that Hera appears from the hangar with a bundle in her arms. "Oh good your all here, I need to debrief you on a mission. Ezra go change into these." she says as she hands the bundle over.

Ezra takes the outfit but stands still not sure where to go. Zeb makes the first move and leads him towards their cabin. Ezra takes a look around and gets a better look than the night before. Set into the back wall he sees two bunks, like Kanan's room there is a table set to the side. The walls and floor are worn down and areas covered in scratches and scorch marks. "Get those on, and meet us back in the galley."

Ezra does as asked, and when he returns he finds his plate where he left it and the rest eating their own food. Few words are exchanged between the four and astromech, but Chopper alerts them of his entrance and the crew gets their first look at Ezra with his new outfit.

His outfit is a simple orange flight suit with a golden yellow high raised collar that hides the burns on his neck. A pair of black fingerless gloves go on each hand, and light brown vest. The left leg of the suit is missing all but putting his prosthetic on display. There is also a distinct lack of boots.

Ezra shuffles around, trying to get used to the new clothes. Kanan studies the clothes on his thin frame, and the rest can only stare at the thin metal limb. With the pant leg only reaching just above the knee, they can see that his flesh ends at about the same area. The prosthetic has a rounded cap that attaches to the limb. The piece that substitutes his shin is little more than a pole with holes to one side to allow adjustments to be made. The part that acts as his foot is perfectly flat with a rounded top. Kanan studies how the leg is able to bend and sees a simple hinge set up to allow it to bend.

With his new haircut, the crew gets a better look at his face, and sees slight bruising on his right cheek.

"What was the mission?" Ezra asks trying to get the attention off himself. Kanan gestures to the spot next to him on the bench, where Ezra's plate still rests. "We'll eat and talk."

Ezra nods and pick at his plate, only eating some of what the crew gave him. As he picks, and the crew eats they go over the plan. "Vizago has intel of a firearm trade going on back at Lothal involving Minister Tua and an Aqualish arms dealer by the name of Amda Wabo, and they will most likely have a protocol droid with them to help with translations. All we need to do is find a way to separate the droid from their convoy, than you will step in and find out the location of the shipment." Hera says, and Ezra perks up at the knowledge, and decides to test her out.

 _"So you speak Aqualish?"_  Ezra asks in the language mentioned. The crew looks to the former slave and Sabine slowly nods. "Ye-"

 _"I want to see how well you know it."_ Ezra says slowly gaining confidence.

 _"OK, can I ask how and why you know it."_ Sabine asks,

 _"It was required of the slaves to learn different languages, that way no matter who got us, we would understand them."_ Ezra explains.

The rest of the crew can only stare in shock, at the ease of which Ezra speaks the difficult language. Sabine on the other hand, who has trained at an imperial academy before, has to pause and think about what to say. "Ezra how do you know that language?" Hera tentatively asks.

Ezra looks over at the Twi'lek all but forgetting that the other four were there, and that they didn't know the language. "It was required." is all he says and they leave it at that, not wanting to give the simple explanation again

"Ok here's the new plan." Kanan says excited to include the newest member in a way that won't hurt him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah a lot of stress for the little Blueberry, as well as tears. If you, the loyal readers, don't like something within the chapter, or would like to see something, run me a comment or PM. I am open for suggestions on many of my stories.


	8. Ion the Prize

The plan was set, by this time the next day Sabine and Ezra would pose as two Imperial academy students, Zeb would handle Chopper, Kanan would be a "casualty", and lastly Hera would be on stand-by waiting for the location of the crates. With the duties assigned and food eaten, the crew satisfied Ezra ate half of the food given, Sabine grabs Ezra's wrist and drags him away, with little more than a hurried "inspiration". Zeb retires to his room, and Kanan goes to follow, only to be restrained by Hera's strong grip on his wrist. "We need to talk."

Kanan nods and sits down. Hera places her hands on her hips in front of him. "I know that you know that Ezra is force sensitive. What I don't know is why you won't explain it to him."

Kanan exhales and looks away. "I'm worried about what will happen when he learns."

"What do you mean? What do you think will happen?" She asks while placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I'm not sure of the details, but there was someone like Ezra. I never got a chance to meet them, but rumor was that he was strong in the force, and that the power corrupted him."

"There's no guarantee that will happen to Ezra though. Kanan, you need to trust him before he hurts himself or someone close." Hera implores as she tightens her grip on his shoulder. Kanan nods. "I'll think about it." Hera lowers her head knowing that that is all she'll get of this conversation anymore. The two different pairs of footfalls approach from the cabins. Both turn to look to see Sabine in her own pair of sleepwear leading Ezra. The former slave changed into the clothes he came in, only with the finished dye job. The pants are a burnt orange with the hems and tears fixed up, The shirt is a bright orange with a blue star bird painted on. in his arms is a pair of Sabine's older boots

"Hey Ezra I see Sabine dyed your clothes as well as got you some boots, do they fit ok?" Hera asks. Ezra nods, "Yes ma'am, their fine." Sabine smiles and says, "Hey, show them your leg."

Again Ezra nods and lifts up the left pant leg to show the dull prosthetic painted the same orange as the suit Hera gave him before with small star birds painted in yellow, as well as blue swirls. "Is that what you meant when you said you were inspired?" Hera says directing a look at Sabine. "What can I say."

"Fine get to bed you two, we have a lot going on tomorrow. That means you Kanan." Hera says and heads to her own cabin. Ezra follows her example and heads to the cabin he now shares with Zeb. Once inside he sees Zeb laying on his side on the bottom bunk facing the wall. Ezra takes the hint and goes to the upper bunk. once up their he removes the prosthetic and sits it against the wall. Apparently the noise from the leg stirs Zeb as his voice rings from below in an irritated tone. "What are you doing kid?"

"Sorry, just getting situated." A moment of silence and taking a risk in angering the Lasat Ezra speaks up. "What sort of weapons do you think we're getting?"

"Why does it matter kid? All weapons are the same." Zeb says

"Not all of them." Ezra points out and the room is silent. Zeb can only think about what the kid meant before sleep claims him as well. His dreams shifting to nightmares of a burning race.

* * *

With the start of the mission the crew heads to a loading bay, and get on a transport. Ezra and Sabine get on first and sit in the second row, right behind where the minister and her company will sit. Zeb sits in the middle area with Chopper in the aisle beside him. Minister Tua and Amda Wabo enter with the Imperial Droids, and just as the doors are about toclose Kanan makes a leap through the shrinking space, promptly taking a seat behind Zeb.

The pilot droid turns around saying the customary greeting, "Sentients, prepare for take off." Ezra tries to relax when he hears Chopper shock Zeb with a discharge. "You have enough room, so quite crowding me." Zeb growls as he shoves Chopper away with his foot, receiving a shock there. "Hey can't you get that astromech under control?" At that Chopper points the arm at him. Zeb turns around and glares at Kanan, "Well maybe you should mind your own business." Chopper once again shocks the Lasat.

"HEY, isn't there a rule about astromechs being in the passenger area?" Kanan yells up to the pilot droid. The pilot simulates a sigh and directs all astromechs to the back of the transport. "I'm sorry, but these droids are with me, and I'm on Imperial business."

"I'm sorry miss, but those are imperial regulations." It than turns back towards the front. Sabine and Ezra share a look as Wabo says something, that upsets Tua because she can't understand. Ezra taps the minister on the shoulder to gain her attention. "I'm sorry to bother you ma'am, but maybe my sister and I can help."

"Oh and how do you suppose you can help?" Minister Tua asks exasperatedly. Sabine speaks up next.

"Well my brother and I are attending the Imperial Academy, and both studied Aqualish. Now my brother is only a level three, and still learning, but I'm a level five. It would help him greatly if he could practice translating, and if he makes a mistake I can easily correct it." The minister seems to think about it for a moment before nodding, "I was once in the same position as you two once, very well, just ask him where the shipment is located."

 _"Excuse me, but the Minister would like to know where the shipment is located?"_ Ezra asks and Sabine is amazed at how fluent he is in the strange language. Amda looks to the youth seated behind him, and replies  _"Tell her that the shipment is located in bay 7."_

As soon as he gets the answer he looks to Sabine, "Did he say bay 7 or 17? I always get those mixed up." Sabine remembers how they planned to put the true location first, so right away she answers with "He said Bay 17, but you did good, better than I did at that level." And she meant that. He probably knows more than she ever will.

The rest of the ride is done in silence, when they reach the next docking point Tua places a hand on both youths shoulders and congratulates them on getting as far as they did in their  _studies_  as well as to keep working on them. As soon as the majority of the populous Ezra climbs up a pile of cargo, and crawls into a vent, making his way up to the roofs. Remembering his short two years spent on the streets, he judges the jumps he needs to make to get to the targeted bay, and starts leaping. Once there he enters the vent system yet again and drops down to the ground.

He rushes to the large bay doors and with the droid arm in hand opens the door. Zeb and Sabine are right there, and Ezra easily steps to the side, not expecting the large hand being placed on his shoulder. Ezra looks up just as Zeb leaves him in favor of checking out the crates with Sabine and Kanan. "Any idea on what the cargo is?" Zeb asks as he lifts up the lid from one of the containers only to promptly drop it after seeing the weapons. Ezra sneaks a peak and can understand his reaction.

"Woah aren't those T-7 Ion Disruptors. They were banned by the senate. You could short-circuit an entire ship with just one of these." Sabine says as she picks up on of the rifles. Zeb continues backing away, and looks like he has something on his mind when Kanan returns from opening the other bay door, allowing Hera to lower the Ghost into the area.

Ezra begins pushing one of the hover carts towards the ghost, from the large window he sees Hera looking rushed. Sabine gets hers and Zeb's cart to the ghost first, and Ezra is halfway when the Minister arrives with a group of Troopers. Before anyone can do anything Zeb raises his hands above his head and approaches the group. "Is there a problem here?"

Ezra catches the tail end of what Wabo says, but from their look he can tell that their irritated. The golden protocol droid approaches with the blue and white astromech "Amda Wabo says that those crates contain his disruptors."

Zeb scoffs, "Well that can't be right cause disruptors are illegal."

Tua points a glare at the Lasat. "That's irrelevant, we're going to search your crates."

"Be my guest," Zeb says as he gestures towards the cart Ezra was pushing. When the Troopers start approaching he all but ducks behind the cart after seeing the look in the Lasat's eyes. From where he is he can hear Zeb say "On second thought." Before crashes are heard. Kanan rushes to his side as Zeb takes care of the Troopers, and tells him to load the cart onto the ghost. As he loads the cargo he realizes too late that the imperial droids followed him onboard. The golden one introduces itself as 3CP-O and the small white and blue one and R2-D2.

It seems startled at the sight of Kanan and Zeb and seems outraged and being restrained. Ezra is meant to keep an eye on them, but can't help but over hear the conversation between the older ghost crew. Ezra spares a glace at the crates holding the weapons, and remembers what Xylina said they were used for, and understands where Zeb is coming from. So when Zeb retreats to their room Ezra leaves him be and sits in the cockpit with Hera instead. Hera takes the moment to ask him something. "So did Kanan explain anything to you yet?"

"What do you mean Ma'am?" Hera deflates at the title, but knows it will take more than a few days to fix five years.

"I'll talk to him about it, but what are you doing in here?"

"I wanted to leave Zeb alone, He's going through a lot."

"Do you mean with the disruptors? What do you know about them."

"One of the other slave, Xylina said that they were used against her people, and she would still get nightmares about it." a moment of silence follows where Hera processes the information, and Hera can just barely hear Ezra mumble "I hope they're OK."

Hera wants to say something but Lothal comes into view and she decides to save to for later.

* * *

Hera easily lands the Ghost outside the group of rocks that makes up Vizago's meeting point for all trades. He picks up one of the disruptors and runs two fingers along the length, "Ah I could make sweet music with these."

Ezra flinches at the choice of words and glances over at Zeb to see his tense. Kanan shakes his head "You have to buy them from us before you can make any kind of  _music."_

"Ah I see that you are finally beginning to learn Jarrus. You, load up the crates." Vizago directs towards the droids, and Ezra has to resist the urge to follow the order as well. A hand rest on his shoulder, and he recognizes the four fingered grip from the one crew member that has it. He watches the transaction proceed when in the distance an imperial ship approaches. "YOU WERE FOLLOWED?!" Vizago yells and looks towards is droids. "Come we are leaving."

"You didn't pay us yet." Kanan says as he grabs the traders wrist "No deal, Vizago does not pay for half of a shipment. Hope you all live to do business again." And just like that they drive away, leaving the ghost crew to fend off the Imperials and keep them from getting the disruptors.

The carrier drops two walkers and lands to allow Troopers to storm off towards them. Kanan turns back and starts giving orders. "Sabine I need you to destroy the Disruptors, I don't want the Imperial's to get any of them. Ezra help her with that. Zeb I need you to help me stall."

With the assignments given Ezra runs after Sabine to be held up by R2-D2 along with the Mandalorian as the droid beeps and picks up one of the guns. "Of course, if we over load the charges, BOOM! Good job little fella, you can join us any time." She than turns her attention back to Ezra and explains what needs to be done. As they do that they can hear the start of a fight, Ezra sneaks a peak and sees Agent Kallus wielding a weapon much like Zeb's only the color is yellow, and it looks to be in better condition than the Lasat's.

"What are you doing with a Bo Rifle? Only the Lasan Honor Guard can wield them." Zeb exclaims enraged as Kallus is knocked to the ground. As the agent picks himself up, he seems all too overjoyed at the development. "I know, I removed it from a guardsman myself, or should I say Guardswoman." That comment all but makes Zeb murderous as he charges at Kallus with little thought. It is at this point when the weapons are overloaded and ready to burst, that Ezra and Kanan push one cart towards the walker still standing, while Sabine and the droids push theirs towards the troopers.

The explosion hits, bodies and tech are thrown every which way, Zeb and Kallus are able to remain standing when the agent takes the opportunity to jab Zeb in the chest with the electrified end. Ezra was witness to this and memories of his own and other slaves electrocutions run through his mind, Ezra manages to drag himself to his feet just as Kallus is about to deal the finishing blow that will no doubt put an end to the warrior.

Ezra feels the familiar sensation fuel his body with power in this situation, and instead of being afraid of it and trying to hide it away, he lifts his hands with a shouted "No!" he was not going to lose anyone else. To his astonishment Kallus is pushed away and hits the far way with enough force to knock him out. All Ezra can do is stare at his hands in shock, and once again fear. Kanan being seeing what the former slave accomplished forces himself to his feet and pushes him towards Sabine and Hera, "Get him to the ship." Both females grab a wrist and drag him while Kanan goes back to pick up the fallen Lasat and helps him to his feet, and allows him to use his body as a crutch to get moving.

Back on the ship Ezra wrings his hands together as he looks at the injured Lasat. "Are you gonna be OK?"

Zeb looks up at the youth. "Yeah, it's nothing." He than shifts his gaze to Kanan, "Thanks for the save there."

He merely shakes his head. "It's Ezra you should be thanking." The crew looks to the slave and can see the growing discomfort at all the attention. Kanan leaves Zeb to Hera and Sabine and places a hand on Ezra's shoulder. "Come on, I need to explain something to you." and leads the boy to his cabin.


	9. All For Fruit

Ezra simples follows Kanan to the room he shares with Zeb, unsure why Kanan would choose his bunk as a place to talk. Kanan settles on the bed, and gesture to the table they have against the wall. Ezra sits at the gestured to spot, and wraps his left arm around his right. Kanan speaks up when he senses the unspoken question. "I chose this room that way we're on what I'd like to think of as 'equal ground'. It's a room you're more familiar with, and you're closer to the door that way you can leave when ever."

Ezra nods and relaxes a bit. Once he gets comfortable on the table Kanan once again speaks up. "I know you don't understand what happen, but first to do you remember the message the Holocron gave, and how it talked of the force?"

Ezra gives a hesitant nod. "Well, what you just used was the force." When the teen in front of him doesn't say anything Kanan continues. "The force is everywhere, it surrounds us, penetrates us, and it binds the universe together. From what I just saw you're strong in it."

"What does that mean in the future?" he asks timidly. Kanan has a strong erg to comfort him and reassure him, but after the last few time he think that Ezra need the space to process things on his own. "It means that I would train you in the ways of the force, and teach you how to use it."

At the word train Ezra flinches as memories of whips getting close enough to his skin to leave a red mark but not break skin, lugging around crates all day, cramps from not eating until he got the job done right. the memories go on until a hand is placed on his shoulder, he looks up to see Kanan backing up onto the bed now that Ezra's eyes are no longer glazed over, lost in memories he will hopefully never have to relive.

"We'll take things slow at first, get you used to sensing it, and we'll go at your pace." Ezra nods and the two leave for the comforts of the main room where Sabine and Zeb are playing Sabacc, Ezra merely watches the familiar game in silence.

* * *

The next few months that follow are filled with small missions and getting a handle on the force. When Kanan said that they would be going at Ezra's pace he meant it. Ezra has gotten the hang of meditating. The breathing the same as trying to get though past pain. Trying to feel the force on the other hand was far harder, it took a good two months before he could even feel Kanan through the force.

In that time the crew also noticed a difference in Ezra's personality, as well as his hidden collection of Trooper helmets. As he got used to the crew, as well as the force, he became slightly outgoing, and they were surprised to see a sarcastic personality behind the abuse. Ezra still had the habit of reverting back to his former self when he thought he was in trouble and was about to be punished. As for the helmets, they didn't know about them until a blockage registered within the vent. They sent Ezra in because he was the only one that would fit, and when he came out it was with three helmets. The crew found it amusing to see the small collection, and Zeb allowed him to keep them in their cabin.

As of right now though, Ezra was alone in the main area with Chopper and practicing his levitation skills on his empty breakfast bowl. Chopper whops something and Ezra peeks through his closed eyes to see the bowl hanging in the air by a good few inches. He smiles a bit before he sees one of Choppers arms holding it up.

"I don't need any help Chopper." He says as he folds his arms,

"Whomp Wom." Chopper drones as he waves the bowl around. With bowl still in his hand, Chopper rolls away towards the cabins. "Chopper I still need to practice." Ezra says as he gets up to follow. Sabine's door is opened, and so he peaks his head in there first to check for the droid. He studied the small details the Mandalorian was adding to one of her former paintings. After the few times of Sabine comforting him he has learned to slowly place his mistrust in the Mandalorian somewhere else. Sabine notices the former slave just as he is about to leave. "Hey Ezra, can I help you with something?"

Ezra shakes his head, "Unless you know where I can find a certain droid than I don't think so." And with that he leaves to continue his search. A noise comes from behind him and he just catches the tall-tale signs of orange and the door to his shared cabin close. He winced at the prospect of entering the room.

After helping get the T-7's to the Devaronian, Ezra has all but avoided the Lasat, remembering what Xylina told him. Seeing how he needs to at least get the bowl back, he opens the door and sees Chopper stopped right in front of Zeb. Ezra freezes and frantically whispers "Chopper, get out of here."

"Whomp Wom Wom Whomp."

"How about this, I'll leave first than you follow, OK?" Chopper's dome swirls around and before Ezra can do anything, throws the bowl at the dozing Zeb. Zeb roars, and dashes after the droid, while Ezra evades the enraged Lasat to the side. Taking deep breaths to calm himself he retreats to his bunk and continues his breathing. When the door opens next, Hera walks in and looks around. "Is Zeb not in here?"

"Sorry, he just went after Chopper." Ezra says eventually, getting down from his bunk. Hera wanting to rush forwards as he drops down, but knows that he doesn't like being coddled. "I think they may be in the cargo bay." The two exit the room forgetting to close the door, allowing the artist to see the discarded bowl, inspiration coming to her for the one item.

Upon reaching the Cargo bay, the two see Chopper at the railing celebrating. When they get behind the droid they see Zeb on the ground buried under a stack of boxes. Kanan was standing back, covering his face with his hand. "Do I even want to know?" Hera asks.

"No." is Kanan's simple answer.

"Good. than Zeb, I want you and Ezra to go on a supply run." Hera says as she goes down to the lower level. "Here's the list, and I want at least one Meiloorun."

Hera hands the list to Ezra and pushes the two out of the ship. Kanan walks up behind her arms folded. "Is there a reason you sent the two of them?"

"Ezra has been avoiding Zeb for some reason, and this will hopefully stop that." She says with a smirk. Kanan nods at that, noticing the same thing. The two head to the main room just in time to see Sabine run into the shared cabin. "Sabine what are you doing?" Hera calls out. The mandalorian pokes her head out of the room. "Painting." and heads back in. "That's not your room though."

"I know, I was inspired." and leaves it at that.

Back in town Ezra and Zeb walk through the market. Zeb placed Ezra in charge of the Meiloorun. Ezra tried to get half of the list, but the Lasat wouldn't hear any of it. So that is how Ezra got to wandering around looking for one item out of many.

At every alley, he will look down them on the alert for danger. It is during one of his checks that he hears his name called out. He looks to see an elderly man with tan skin, his hair and mustache long turned white, and jade green eyes. He stands behind a food stall, and it takes a moment for Ezra to recognize him. "Mr. Sumar?"

Mr. Sumar smiles at being recognized by the boy, and gestures over. "Where have you been boy, after I heard what happened to your parents my wife and I couldn't find you anywhere."

Ezra thinks about what to say. He doesn't want to admit to being a slave, the memories still fresh and recovering going slow. "I've been around, but do you know where I can get a Meiloorun?"

The elder man merely shakes his head. "I'm sorry, but those grow off of Lothal, so you'll have to go to an off-world vendor for one." Ezra bows his head. "Thank you." Before he can get to far from the stall however, Mr. Sumar calls out. "And Ezra, becareful out there." Ezra merely nods, and runs off to find a vendor.

He bumps into Zeb who has two large crates in his arms. "OK kid, I found everything but the Meiloorun. Did you have any luck?" Ezra nods "Yeah, a friend of my parents said that we need to look for an off world vendor."

Zeb exhales. "If that's the case, than Hera most likely didn't intend for us to find any." As he says this he hands Ezra the smaller of the crates. "Come on we should just head back to the ship and let her know. As they move, Ezra sees imperialist harassing Mr. Sumar. Without thinking Ezra sets his crate down and picks up one of the supplies, throwing it at the closest trooper. missing by a good foot, but getting their attention regardless. Zeb catches the tail end of what happened, and drops his own crate so that he can grab Ezra and drag him away before their caught.

He drags the boy around corner after corner until they come to a stop behind a stack of crates, failing to notice he trapped them as a TIE floats in front of them and Troopers show up on either side of the crates. Zeb not liking their chances, grabs Ezra and throws him up at the TIE. The boy just managing to catch hold of the top before All open fire on the Lasat. Zeb easily dodges as he jumps up the crates and joins Ezra on top of the TIE, opening the top and throwing the Imp down to the ground. Zeb than drags Ezra into the small ship before trying to get a handle on the controls.

Ezra holds onto the back of the chair, and watches as Zeb gets used to the controls, firing the blaster around the area and scattering the troopers. Ezra grips the chair in a death like grip as Zeb finally flies them away.

At one point as he tries to fly them out of town he hits a fruit stand, coating the front in juices. Out of town and now flying through the wilds, Ezra gets a feeling and doesn't say anything, instead he just grabs the controls and jerks them to the right, saving them from crashing into a mountain.

"How did you know about that?" Zeb asks as he looks back at the mountain, now out of sight. Ezra shrugs, "I don't know." Zeb nods and points to the top. "OK, now see what you can do about getting the canopy cleaned." Ezra nods, and goes to do as asked, thankful that Zeb at least slows down. When he gets back into the cockpit Zeb is making a call, and Hera answers. Ezra stands back as Zeb explains what happened, and Hera freaks out. Kanan speaks up when Zeb complains about getting rid of it. "Did you at least disable the locator?"

"Of course we did," Zeb says into the radio as he turns to Ezra and the two try to figure out the mechanics of the thing. Ezra holds up two different wires that Zeb was saying one would disable it. Kanan's voice cuts through the whispered instructions "It's both the RED and the Blue."

Ezra flinches at the raised tone, and quickly disables it. Trying to avoid angering the man anymore than they already have. After that, things get a little hectic when they come across Mr. Sumar's farm as Imperialist blow it up and take the family and worker away on a prison transport.

Ezra all but begs the Lasat to bring them down so that he can try to save his parent's friend. After he manages to use the force to push the button that releases the couple and Rhodinian. Sadly that seems to alert those inside the craft for not even a few seconds after the farmers jump do troopers appear. Ezra jumps to the other craft where he dodges blaster fire behind the crates strapped to the top. One blast hits the top off one, and when Ezra peaks over he sees the one thing they could not find.

He is quick to grab one, and throws it at a trooper. Not expecting the seemly unarmed teenager to retaliate the one hit falls over the side. Ezra keeps it up, and when Zeb comes back around grabs his arms. After some struggle, Zeb manages to pull them both into the upside down TIE, and safely lands it in a cluster of rocks.

"Well, that could have gone better." He says as he helps Ezra out of the small ship. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, we lost all of the supplies we were supposed to get."

"Not all of them." and before Zeb can ask, the teen reveals the fruit from the backpack he found within the TIE.

Zeb smirks at the sight of the meiloorun. "Good job kid." and than looks to the TIE, "So what are we going to do about this?" Ezra shrugs, and the two leave it at that.

As they walk back towards the Ghost, Zeb tries to persuade Ezra to go with his idea of persuading Kanan in letting them keep it. Ezra simple remains silent. They finally reach the Ghost where Hera and Kanan stand at the entrance waiting for them. Zeb tosses the Meiloorun at Hera and smiles. "One Meiloorun, as requested."

"Thank you Zeb, and We can easily get the supplies again tomorrow." The Twi'lek says. Kanan steps forward with a question. "So what happened to the TIE?"

Zeb struggles with an answer or good argument, when Ezra speaks up. "We crashed it."

All three look towards the teen. "At first we wanted to keep it, but thought better of it, so we crashed it on purpose." When Kanan approaches, Ezra tries to hold back a flinch as the man places a hand on his head and ruffles his hair. When the two leaders go back into the ship, Zeb looks down at Ezra. "I knew that Kanan wouldn't be happy with us keeping it, but it might come in handy later so-" Before He can go on defending himself, Zeb places a hand on the boys shoulder. " I get it, and I'm proud of you."

"For what? lying."

"No for not calling Kanan Master, or Mister, or sir."

Ezra opens his mouth to defend himself, when he realizes that Zeb is right. That was the first time in his time here that he hasn't added anything before his name or after his sentence. He gives a small smile and the two head to the bunk, when they see Sabine exit. "OH you guys are back, perfect."

The two enter and on the side wall they see the cause for Sabine being in there. Painted on the durasteel is a cartoon rendition of Chopper holding a bowl above his head with a dizzy looking Zeb and Ezra within. Zeb goes to hunt down the bucket of bolts, while Ezra stays behind to smile at the simple drawing. Sabine sees it before she leaves and is happy that she could bring a smile to the former slaves face, leaves with a smile of her own.


	10. Old Ways

A month has passed since that eventful supply fun, and in that time Ezra has become more comfortable with the crew. There are still things that he kept to himself. He called Kanan Sir or Master less and less as time went by, soon to stop all together. He would still try to avoid Chopper, but that too lessened.

Ezra still has a habit of getting up early, but that just means that he can work of meditating and levitation in peace. If only that came in handy for what Kanan had in for today Ezra thinks as he balances on his hands on top of the ghost while it hovers above the clouds. Ezra moves from one arm to the other when they get tired, once again glad he kept training with the twins in balance. It also doesn't help that he doesn't have a lot of upper arm strength.

"Focus Ezra." He hears Kanan say, and grimaces. "Sorry." And with that one word he loses his balance and falls backwards into a crate of Cartons Zeb brought up. Kanan helps him out and Zeb laughs, now unafraid of hurting the teens feelings. After that Training gets worse, when Kanan allows Ezra to use his lightsaber for the first time.

He directs the boy of how to shorten it to the correct length, and than has Ezra stand at the head of the ship where he is instructed to knock back the cartons he landed in before. He is told to sense them coming and to keep his eyes closed.

It's from this that Ezra's mind wanders to what could truly happen, and ends up getting hit enough times to actually fall off, only to be saved by Kanan utilizing the force. Zeb stands on the lowered hanger door and grabs him before Kanan loses focus. Chopper rests just behind them and warbles worriedly. Ezra answers with "I'm fine." Zeb helps him to his feet and after Chopper closes the door the three head up the common area where the rest are sure to be.

Kanan meets them at the ladder and looks towards Ezra, "I thought I told you to focus." He says in as calm a voice he can manage.

"I'm sorry. I tried my best."

"Do or do not, there is no try. We need to work on your focus and discipline." Ezra gives a quick nod and moves around the jedi. Not feeling comfortable on the latter word used. Focus he could do, if it was on work. Discipline he had enough of.

Hera and Sabine take one look at the youth and decide against asking him about training, both seeing the teen fall and get levitated back up. Sabine turns on the halo and instead directs their attention to the story about a stolen TIE. The Holo displays the stolen TIE as well as a small area of the market where it was taken. "Look at what's finally on the news." It doesn't describe the two thankfully and Ezra thinks about telling Sabine about their secret at some point. All of a sudden the report gets interrupted by static and in it's place is an image of an older man with graying hair and tan skin. With the image comes a different voice as well as another transmission.

"Citizens, This is senator and exile Gall Trayvis. I bring you more news the Empire doesn't want you to hear. One of the Republic's greatest peace keepers, Jedi Master Luminara Unduli, is alive." And from the way it's said leads to almost disbelief. "She's being imprisoned unlawfully somewhere in the Stigion System. As citizens, we demand the Emperor release Unduli and grant her a fair trial before the enti-" and that is where it stops, the former transmission about the TIE resuming as though nothing happened.

"Did you know her?" Ezra braves to ask, and Kanan nods "I met her, once. She was a great Jedi Master. Brave, compassionate, disciplined," Kanan pauses thinking of something. "In fact, she'd be the perfect teacher for you." Ezra tries his best to hide his expression from Kanan as they go about discussing the mission, Ezra simple follows, his mind once again else where.

_He was about eleven when a slave who was sold was brought back, and left with them. The girl didn't even know what she did wrong, only that the person didn't like it and returned her like broken goods. Before this, she was hopeful that the situation would improve, after she can back, she was nothing more than an empty shell. She just went through the motions of everyday life, but displayed no emotion._

Now Ezra stands near the opened bay door waiting for some kind of signal to act upon. Kanan lands on the platform below and makes quick work of the two troopers standing guard. In the backpack he kept from the TIE lies a miracle curtesy of Sabine. When Kanan removes the second trooper Zeb jumps down, with Sabine following after. Ezra takes that as his cue to jump down, only to fail on the landing and he rolls, hitting the door, resulting in an ominous boom to go through the walls within.

Ezra cringes and gets up, just as the doors open and four more troopers appear. The door locks again when they exit, and while the other fight them off, Ezra gets to work on opening the door. Both tasks are finished at the same time and Ezra tries to make himself small as the other three past. He enters just as the door closes, and catches Sabine mentioning that the cells are placed at a lower level than than thought. They grab a lift and Ezra finds the conversation between Zeb and Sabine about Kanan amusing, especially since the man is right in the middle.

When the lift gets to their floor, Kanan knocks out the two troopers waiting outside. "Hold this lift, It's our main escape route now."

Kanan than leads Ezra through the halls towards the lone cell guarded by troopers. Just as they notice the Jedi Kanan holds up his left hand. "Shouldn't you be guarding the Jedi? She's on the other level."

"She's on the other level." the further one says in a monotone voice

"You should get that."

"We should get going." and with that both take off towards what could be another lift.

"Can you teach me that?" Ezra asks in awe, momentarily forgetting what their purpose here is.

"Trust me, Master Luminara can teach you a lot better than I can. Now come on." With that the two enter the cell where a green skinned female sits in prisoner orange. "Master Luminara?"

Ezra and Kanan can do little more than watch as she gets up to stand right in front of them before turning to the left and phasing through what can only be a coffin with a window. Through the single window they see what was once Luminara turn blue with her skin tightening up against her skull, leaving behind a mummified version of the Jedi.

The door opens behind them before Ezra can ask what happened, and in the light of the room they can tell the man is a Pu-an with black armor, and red facial tattoos. He gives a smile showing of rows of razor like teeth. "Welcome Jedi, to your end." The door closes behind him and traps them in the cell.

Ezra can do little more than observe when he remembers the miracle Sabine gave him, and places it by the door, hoping the Pu-an, who calls himself The Inquisitor, didn't see. Behind him, Ezra can hear the Pu-an antagonizing Kanan about his past training with a Jedi master that went by Depa Billaba.

Kanan gets knocked down to his feet, and Ezra can hear the beeps get quicker. Ezra turns to study the man who seems to be studying him back. "Judging by the barely visible scars around your neck as well as the ones you're trying to hide on your wrists, you are a slave." Ezra jolts at that and a hand flies up to block his neck. Before he can say anything else the bombs goes off, and Ezra grabs Kanan's wrist to drag him out of the cell and into the hallway where The two force users are once again locked in combat. Ezra stands back when the dark force user calls out to him. "Are you paying attention Slave? The Jedi are dead, but there is another side of the force. Come with me and I'll show you the stronger side."

Kanan pushes the man back and glares. "Leave him alone!"

"Stay out of it Jedi, and let the slave decide for itself." And with that Kanan is force pushed over Ezra's head and is momentarily unconscious. "So, will you join me and become my apprentice. The Jedi lacks focus and discipline." Ezra shakes his head, and takes notice of Kanan's saber at his feet. He gingerly picks it up, pointing the now activated blade at the Pu-an "Well so am I."

Before Ezra can move the Inquisitor dashes towards him. Behind him Kanan yells "NO!" with his hand outstretched. The Pu-an freezes, and is lifted up to the ceiling and held there. Ezra tries to swallow the lump in his throat as he goes back to towards Kanan with his light saber now deactivated.

Kanan drops the inquisitor and they meet up with Zeb and Sabine as they run towards the main platform. The blaster doors close and they make through just before the last one closes thanks to Zeb's quick thinking. The only obstacle now is the large hangar doors. "Ezra together."

Ezra nods and the two close their eyes, Kanan directing Ezra. "Focus on the locking mechanism, imagine the gears turning, and the door unlocking. When that is done, imagine nothing in our way to the ship."

Ezra does as directed, and focuses solely on the directions, blocking out the Lasat's complaints. As soon as the doors are opened the troopers guarding the outside platform rain fire down on the four.

"Now would be a good time for a miracle." Sabine exclaims as she returns fire along side Kanan. Zeb comes up behind her holding one. "Good thing we've got one." and tosses the small activated device their way.

"Hera, we could use some backup." Kanan says into his comm unit "Already headed back with the fleet."

Zeb looks over and asks "We have a fleet?"

Before anyone gets a chance to answer, They see the Phantom approach, followed by some unknown creatures. When the Phantom gets close enough with the doors opened, Kanan force tosses Ezra in. The inquisitor finally manages to get through the closed doors and approaches. Sabine and Zeb enter the Phantom, Kanan joining them after deflecting a few blaster shots. Kanan gets on the Phantom and as they leave the base, The Inquisitor throws his double bladed light saber, missing the ship by inches.

The trip back to the Ghost is taken in silence, The only words exchanged are between Hera and Kanan. "Was she?"

"Dead."

"How's Ezra taking it?"

"Better than I am."

In the Back Ezra hugs his knees to his chest and absently rubs at the burns on his neck. They have healed nicely thanks to the balms and lotions that Hera has been applying, the blisters and broken skin have healed, but the overall scar has only darken. A constant reminder of what has happened to him. Sabine takes a seat right next to him, and places a hand over his shoulders. She doesn't say anything, but from the way he was touching his neck burns, she knows something was brought up.

* * *

The moment they're back on the Ghost Ezra doesn't turn as he says "I'll be in my room if you need me sir." and leaves, the sound of a door opening and closing shocks the rest of the crew out of it. It has been a good while since Ezra has last spoken a title like that, and only Kanan knows what happened in the cell.

Hera goes to follow the teen, but is stopped by a hand on her shoulder. "I've got this."

Kanan knocks before entering, but when there is no reply enters. He finds Ezra on the top bunk curled up, and staring at the wall. "You doing OK kid?" There's a shift in the blankets indicating that he nodded his head.

"you see you do that, but I can't help but to think that're lying after what happened."

"yeah well the truth is stupid. I only tell it when it seems like I'm lying, sir."

Kanan exhales. "See you have the same whit about you, but you had to ruin it with the 'sir'. Why?"

A few moments pass in silence before Ezra answers. "You were giving me away."

At those five words, Kanan starts to get a better clue about what Ezra might be going through. "I wasn't giving you away, I just wanted you to have the best teacher."

Ezra turns and shows his face, "There's no such thing as the best teacher, everyone has a different style, and if you try, you aren't doing your best."

The Jedi smiles at how Ezra turned his own words back at him in a way. "Than I guess I should stop trying."

"I'll make sure to do the same."

The two smile and shake on it. Hoping that everything will turn out all right in the future.


	11. acquaintance

Ezra stands in the vast field of Lothal, Kanan in front of him with the vast fields stretching out behind him. Kanan throws a stone out into the grass, and a startled Loth-Cat pounces out. "Now, see if you can form a connection."

Ezra holds out a hand and tries, he knows it's possible, he has done it with the creatures that infested the slave barracks late at night to keep them away from those close without knowing it. Now it's a struggle just to form one simple connection. When he fails to form one after a few minutes, he looks at Kanan with downcast eyes. "Can we not do this today?"

Kanan is surprised by the question, but nods. "Yeah, let's meet up with the others, and go over the plan for later."

Ezra attempts a smile, but Kanan can sense the sadness, and fear surround the young teen. They walk side by side into the capitol, and Kanan can't help but notice that from all the times Ezra lingered a few steps behind.

The two meet up with the others at Jo's Tavern where Ezra sticks by Kanan, not wanting to be left alone at the moment. Kanan takes a seat at the bar and Ezra sits next to him, keeping his head low and hiding the marks on his neck with the collar of the top. Sabine and Hera are seated at a table close to the bar, and Zeb has Chopper over at a corner table.

Two storm troopers barge into the area and begin to man-handle any Rhodinian in the bar, comparing them to a picture of one Ezra hasn't seen since his family was taken away, and his nightmare began. "Zeebo?" The former slave whispered in disbelief. Kanan heard him and looked over the young males shoulder at the Rhodinian the troopers were currently harassing.

Another Trooper is harassing Jo about the lack of Imperial broadcast being shown.

As the broadcast plays Ezra can't help but glare at the screen, the look softens and Exile makes his claim on avoiding the parade celebrating Empire Day.

The rest of the Ghost crew take notice of Ezra's need for close proximity, yet his flinches have never been more violent He's standing next to Sabine and Zeb when they set off the fireworks.

From the corner of his eye he can see Kanan approached by a Trooper after setting the firework device right underneath the newest model of TIE. Once the detonation happens all hell breaks loose. When Zeb takes aim at Kallus with his Bo Rifle and switches to the Inquisitor, Ezra pulls him away before he can fire. "We need to go, They can't find us."

The Lasat takes account of Ezra's words and knows the boy is right, "There'll always be another chance, but not if we're caught." And those words truly make the final decision.

As they run, Ezra takes the lead and leads them to his family home once again, still in the condemned state they first saw it in. Ezra is pacing, mumbling to himself, before he goes over to a sitting area with a table melded into the floor. At least that's what they all thought before he lifts the center piece effortlessly and peers down.

The others keep their distance one, to allow Ezra space to do what he thought needed to be done, and two, they honestly were too shocked at the secret tunnel. Ezra whispers down into the hole, but his words are urgent, and within seconds a Rhodinian makes themselves known to all within the room without paying a single on any attention.

Ezra flinches when the Rhodinian crashes into a wall, mumbling in their native language.

"Ezra, who's that?" Sabine asks before following after the alien and translating what they were saying.

"He's name is Zeebo, he was a friend of my parents."

"Like those farmers?" Zeb asks and Ezra nods trying to ignore the complicated tech jargon he had no hope of ever understanding.

When Sabine begins to explain what is happening, the former slave slips down the tunnel to check on his parents recording equipment. He'd never been allowed down here growing up. After a while Sabine comes down to get the boy.

"Hey Ezra, we need to discuss something, would you like to come back up?" there's that new treatment again. Ever since he joined the crew officially, the others have taken to asking his opinion before starting something.

He nods, sparing one last look at a data chip set on one of the machines. Sabine is aware of this and makes sure to grab the chip before following him up.

After the discussion a plan is decided. Hera with Chopper are to meet them outside the capitol where Kanan, Zeb, Sabine and Ezra will try to find a way to bring Zeebo to the rest of the rebellion.

* * *

Sabine is the only one in the galley when Zeebo finally has a moment of lucidity and brings about the fact that his parents are alive.

When the mission is over she goes to comfort Ezra, and slips him the data chip, instructing him on how to use it before slipping away.

The image on the chip is one that was long since forgotten, staring a happy family with a small boy of five on his mother's back, and his father's hands on either of their shoulders. Tears come unhindered, but silently.

Kanan is able to find the boy hiding on the top turret gun staring sadly at the image. Kanan smiles sadly at the image of a happy family broken apart.

Kanan hovers a hand over Ezra's shoulder silently asking for permission, only to have the boy hug him of his own accord. Kanan smiles at the Ezra gives him at the moment and returns it, the two illuminated by the warm orange glow of the past.


	12. Touching Sight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zeb lost a bet to a smuggler, and Ezra is reunited with those from his past.

Zeb begins to get cocky even though he has no credits left, and decides to bet Chopper to get the credits for fuel and food. The other member agrees to the bet and the Lasat loses due to an Idiot's Array.

The final Gambler introduces himself as Lando Calrisian, and that is how Kanan introduces him to the rest of the crew when they get back to the ghost.

Hera greets the three crew members and guest, while Sabine discusses ideas on designs for Ezra's trooper helmet resting in his lap. Once Lando brings up returning the droid to the crew once the crew once a mission is done, Ezra jolts, and looks at the Lasat that lost Chopper in the bet.

The other's don't understand why Ezra seems weary around the man, but the boy refuses to leave him out of his sight, going as far as to join them to meet the supplier of Lando's.

* * *

As they walk down the connecting tunnel Lando looks to Hera saying to go with whatever he says. Ezra doesn't fail to notice the look the man sends to the Twi'lek and fear strikes through him as she is pushed towards the kind of person he was all but trained to obey.

Azmorgan takes notice of the boy with traditional scars marking him as a slave. Lando takes notice of this, and pushes Ezra forwards "Ah, but of course with the equipment you are supplying, you'll obviously want a higher payment."

Azmorgan studies the two critically, taking in the pilot outfit and older age of the female, and the slight build and scars marring the boys flesh. The lack of collars on both lead him to believe that both are well trained, perhaps as much his current slaves.

As Lando and his ''partner'' leave, the boy and twi'lek stand in front of him as he eats.

The female turns to the side away from the boy, while he just stands waiting for orders.

"You need food?" Azmorgan asks, thrusting the half eaten fruit towards the two, and the boy merely shakes his head while the twi'lek verbally responds about a lost appetite.

"But perhaps you'd like me to serve you?"

"Yes, yes, yes, good practice for you. Serve me, serve me." is muttered under his breath and the twi'lek takes the tray.

She leans in close, holding the tray out in front of her, allowing the cylindrical metal to force distance between them as she seductively suggests , "and perhaps you'd like to dine alone?"

The look is he gives matches her ''mood'' as he sends the other's away, the Twi'lek turning just in time to see the boy getting shut out on the other side.

* * *

Ezra falls back into the mindset of slave, once Lando pushed him forwards, but now that the crew members have pushed him away, saying to find something to do from the other slaves, he slowly reverts back to specter. Travelling through the ship silently, in search of the other slaves, hoping to bring them back with him and Hera when they find a way to escape.

So lost in thought is he that he collides with a body, sending both sprawling and the laundry that the person once held covers them both.

A voice calls out from beneath the second mound, apologizing for their clumsiness, and begins to remove the clean blankets and sheets from their bodies, meticulously folding them instead of having a large pile like last time. The voice is feminine, and oh so familiar it aches, and Ezra's body refuses to move.

Once the final sheet is removed from his body, his is greeted with the sight of a twi'lek with light blue skin with misty markings on her lekku. She wears a navy blue top that's more like a bra, sleeves are held up by metal bands, and harem pants hang low on her waist. Once all of the bed material is folded and piled, sea foam green eyes greet sky blue.

"I'm so sorry about that sir, I swear it won't happen again." the Twi'lek says as she bows low, all but kissing the floor.

Just as Ezra is about to say something, another Twi'lek makes their appearance. Her pink skin is decorated with dull markings. She wears a halter top with bronze detail bringing color to the deep red. She wears shorts that are just barely visible through the sheer material of the skirt.

"I heard the crash, is everything O...k?" the second female asks as she takes in the boy that grew into a young man.

"Ezra?"

* * *

Hera runs off after hitting Azmorgan with the platter, and begins searching for Ezra. Finding him in the hallway with two other Twi'leks baring the same scars as Ezra.

The two girls seem a little older than Ezra, but size can always be miss leading when trying to calculate age, especially a former slaves.

"Thank you for waiting, now we need to go. It may be a tight fit, but I'm not leaving anyone behind."

The twi'leks eyes bulge, and the pink skinned one grabs the hand of the blue, tightening their hold once they load into the pod and disembark from the main ship.

The three converse silently with one another, and Hera tries not to but, she picks up bits here and there.

"Do you guys know where..."

"... haven't seen..."

".. Course not..."

from this she knows that they are familiar with one another. She remembers one time he mentioned twins that treated him as a sibling, could these be those very Twi'leks?"

Once the escape pod is connected to the ghost and it's safe to board, the three linger for a bit until they are comfortable, and come out after Hera hits Lando where no man should ever get damage. Once Sabine sees the two new additions she smiles and just as she is about to greet them, Lando gets his breath back. "Oh you should not have taken those two, Azmorgan will surely be after us now."

"What do you mean by that? Wouldn't even if they didn't come?" Hera inquires drawing her eyebrows together.

Lando shrugs, "Who knows, he might have left us alone cause he still had the last two slave I brou-" before he can finish Ezra lunges forward and delivers a right hook that Sabine knows would make any Mandolorian proud.

The pink twi'lek flinches once Ezra moves and the blue one only does it once the hit lands. Ezra doesn't give a reason for his outburst, but if Hera is right, Lando more than deserved the bruised cheek Ezra gave him, and the bruised ego she gave.

As Ezra leads the two slaves away, a yellow blur comes barreling down the corridor, and the blue one manages to catch it and calm it down.

When the guilty party makes himself known, the pink one grabs Ezra's arm and whispers furiously in his ear.

Once they separate, Ezra turns towards Hera. "Hera, would it be alright if I go through the spare clothes, and try to find something for them?" Hera nods, and the three leave with the pig still in the ones arms.

* * *

Sabine and Zeb hang out at the railing above the cargo bay and observe the interaction between the former slaves. They learn the blue one, Oola is blind, through the process of asking to see how Ezra has grown in a year, and the boy is quick, and gentle, to bring the Twi'lek's hands to his face where she gracefully spreads her fingers out and begins trying to find any small differences.

The pink one, Aola managed to get the puffer pig back into the crate and is slipping it little morsels of food.

"You have a bit more meat on your bones." Oola remarks with a slight smile and Aola shifts a bit to pinch his arm. "These people are definitely good, make sure to ''keep'' them Ezra." and all three laugh as though she just said a joke.

Ezra goes back to shifting through the spare clothes they typically give to refugees, until he finds a sturdy pair of black pants and tank top for one and shorts and tunic for the other.

The two specters leave the three former slaves to their conversation as they begin approaching Lothal to complete Lando's request.

* * *

Chopper comes into the cargo bay with a fuel cell and his arrival is shortly followed by blaster shots. The girls duck behind the crate of clothes they were just sifting through moments before. Ezra helps Chopper with the fuel by dragging it further in, before going to his stomach to take a peak outside.

...

Azmorgan is there. Azmorgan is out there with his men firing at the crew that took him in and gave him a home. Ezra knows it would be stupid to go out there, but he wants to help.

A hand on either shoulder stops him, and the twins rest on their stomachs on either side of him. Aola gives him a look all too familiar after the incident with his leg, the one that lets him know whatever he is thinking is stupid. "Blu, I know you care for your owners, but going out there would be suicide, and we can't lose you like that."

"They aren't my owners, but I'll listen to you."

The twins choose to ignore the comment, and the two who can see describe everything that happens during the fight. When it's over, Ezra and the twins and glad to welcome the crew back, Ezra with a bit more enthusiasm than either twin has ever seen from the boy. Kanan pulls him away for a bit and the twins approach the only other Twi'lek on the ship.

They find her in the cock-pit, acting as a pilot and captain to the others. The droid is grumbling in binary at the commands given, but completes each one with devotion. Once the older Twi'lek notices their hesitance to enter, she sends the droid away and gestures to the back two seats.

"Hello, I don't think I introduced myself yet, I'm-"

"Hera, Ezra told us about you,"

"About all of you really."

Hera nods, "He also told us a little bit about his older sisters, but never provided names."

Aola is the pink one and Oola is blue skinned. They both opted to sit in the larger seat that was added with the addition of Zeb and it is startlingly big enough to seat them both comfortably. They both shuffle around a bit before Oola breaks the silence. "Is Ezra happy here?"

"What do you mean, wouldn't it be better to ask him yourselves?" Hera questions, cause that could be the only logical way to know if Ezra were truly happy... Right?

"We did ask Ezra," Aola says, "but most slaves will either outright lie to make their master seem favorable to new slaves, or stretch the truth, if only to make sure any new slaves are obedient."

"Normally we would wait to see how he interacts with the crew, but I feel we won't be here long enough to get a proper picture."

Hera stores this information in her head as she begins to describe the frail looking boy on the stage, and how he ran at the sight of chopper. She talks of his first mission of handing out rations to those who needed it, and the imperial warship.

The twins sit silently and soak up the info, hoping to understand the young male that replaced the quiet youth of their past. The info lines up with what Ezra told them, but he left the darker parts out. Such as Zeb leaving him with the imperials, and Kanan about to discard him, but hearing about how those problems were fixed a weight lifts off of their shoulders.

"We're glad he found someone to look after him, after what happened he needed someone to remind him of things worth fighting for."

"And why couldn't you do that for him?"

"I'm sure Ezra told you about how we were born into slavery, and for us we were just fighting to see the next day. Our friend Xylina was fighting to see a friend, and Ezra thought he had nothing to fight for any more. Now he just might."

The discussion goes on, and Ezra tells them that supper is ready. The girls each have a smaller portion than the rest, Ezra's being only slightly bigger, but they make it work out. The girls keep eyeing Zeb, but don't explain their reasoning.

In the end the ghost crew leave the two with a trusted friend, and vow to keep in contact.


	13. Call Out to the Past

"So how did you manage in the academy, was the education any good?"

"Oh yeah, it's fine, if you're eager for serving the Empire."

Hera sits back and listens to the conversation between the teens, a smile on her face. The twin on the screen currently is Oola as her twin is acting as secretary to Senator Organa's daughter. Oola is left to mind their home, along with the droids that the crew met before.

For the past few conversations, Hera has been present, and was happy to see the changes taking place. Ezra was excited every time they were able to get a secure transmission, and the twins were looking better and better as well.

Both girls took to wearing turtlenecks and either long sleeves or arm bands to hide their scars, she didn't notice it the first time but the marks on their Lekku are identical, and slightly familiar.

All too suddenly the mood sours, the soft chuckles coming from the young teen stop, and he holds either arm, making himself small. From the other side of the screen Oola seems to recognize the pause, and tilts her head, lekku flickering. "Is everything ok Ezra? you're awfully quiet."

Ezra mulls over his next words carefully, unsure of how his sister figure will take this bit of news. "I had to lie."

"Lie? about what?" She asks, a slight frown marring her features, but she doesn't look disappointed, just sad.

"I had to lie about my name." Hera can see where this is going, it took awhile to get Ezra comfortable with the lies he would have to tell during that small mission, and he was comfortable the entire time, risking the mission just to check with the rest of the crew as often as he could.

"And, we had to lie to the handlers often, but that was to protect ourselves from further harm." Oola says with a calm voice, and small smile. "I know you probably don't want to hear this, but I proud of how far you've come and how much you've matured. I hate the fact that you feel uncomfortable with lying, but if that is the only thing keeping you safe, and keeps the empire from finding you. I'd honestly rather you lie, than die."

Ezra goes to say something when two things happen at once. From Ezra's side the specters enter the cockpit, and from Oola's side, her twin tackles the blind Twi'lek. "Oola!" "Hey Ezra, you ready?"

Aola looks at the screen to take notice of the specters leaving, Hera now sits alone with the twins and chopper, while Zeb is somewhere else on the Ghost. Aola smiles at the older Twi'lek, liking the stronger woman since the first meeting. "Hello Hera, How're things going?"

Hera smiles and begins recalling some of the lighter moments since their first meeting to share. One such story is when Sabine taught Ezra how to ride a speeder.

* * *

There was a broadcast from Gall Travis calling them insurgents, and placing a bounty on their heads.

Ezra leaves as a plan comes to mind and retreats to the cockpit, not wanting to go outside, and not wanting to hear what the rest are planning as dark thoughts come to mind.

_There were screams, mom and dad were screaming at the monsters to get them to leave. I wasn't supposed to be down here, but they told me to be good. There's bangs and thuds, the silence after is scary. Scarier than the loud sounds. It seems like forever since the silence set in, and I chance leaving to find what happened._

_It's been a year I think, and everyone refuses to look at me, those that do are never nice and some chase after me. I manage to find shelter in an old comm tower mom and dad used in the past, but it's run down and empty, all of their equipment being back home._

_It's the second year, and I've gotten weak. I've gotten slow, I've been caught. I catch sight of a matching mark on both of their armor before I'm locked up in a crate. I hated that, it was small and cramped, but I soon found that the smaller the space the safer I felt._

A hand on his shoulder snaps him out of his thoughts. Looking up he sees Kanan standing beside him. The man sits down in the seat across from him so that he doesn't tower over the teen. "Something on your mind?"

Kanan is patient, and it pays off in the end when Ezra mumbles "What if it happens again?" into his knees

At first Kanan doesn't know what to think of the statement, but it hits a moment later. "Have you no faith in our skills? How many times have we managed to accomplish our objective?"

There's no reply.

"Ezra, I promise we will accomplish our goal with everyone getting out. You just need to trust us."

_"Everything will be ok sweetie, you just have to trust us."_

* * *

The mission is facing one set-back after another.

When they first get there, the Empire is only seconds behind them. Kanan tells everyone to retreat inside the tower for Hera to pick them up, promising to take the second lift to buy time. Once the inquisitor shows that plan changes to keeping the Puan from getting anywhere near his crew.

He watches as Hera takes the rest to safety, Ezra begging from the background for Hera to rescue him.

In the end the transmission is made by the one who has been through hell, but still has a voice. What he hears couldn't make him prouder.

_we have been called criminals, but we are not._

_We are rebels, fighting for the people. Fighting for you._

_I haven't been on Lothal for awhile, but I remember when things were better_

_Maybe not great, but never like this. Never so full of fear_

_See what the Empire has done to your lives? Your families and your freedom?_

_We are not meant to be slaves, or public servants._

_And unless we stand up and fight back._

_It's only going to get worse_

_It won't be easy. There'll be loss, and sacrifice._

_but we can't back down just because we're afraid._

_That's when we need to stand the tallest._

_That's what my parents taught me._

_That's what my new family helped me remember._

_Stand up together_

_because that's when we're strongest._

_As One._

* * *

Kanan watches as the four missiles hit the comm tower, just as Ezra finishes his speech. The look on Grand Moth Tarkin's face is of someone who thinks they've won.

Kanan heard the teen get choked up towards the end of the transmission, and hopes the boy will be OK.

* * *

Those of the Black sun have their hands full. After a transmission was broadcasted through the imperial channel they typically keep up to know what's going on, the slaves have started to riot. Many seeming to know something that they themselves don't.

At the head of the rebellion is a large Lasat woman picking up one of the handlers by the collar of their shirt and throws them one handed across the building towards the other handlers.

* * *

In a prison compound many who spoke against the Empire sit around for evening meal, among them are two who used to hold broadcasts against the Empire. They sit with a friend from before when the usual Imperial broadcast cuts away to static, and seems to be switching between the usual broadcast, to the new one.

The voice is of a young male teen, but the words he speaks spark something within them. A single thought runs through their heads when he brings up his parents.

'Is that our Ezra?'


	14. Slave's Resolve

After the the mixed results on the transmission, Ezra becomes closed off. He responds less and stays with the ship, keeping his mind off what happened by doing small menial tasks and helping with maintenance. Calls from the twins were dropped or just ignored, and everytime the other specters returned from info gathering, his face would fall with each failed attempt. Sabine, Zeb and Hera were witness to what each failed attempt did, and it broke their hearts each time. Chopper saw the shift in personality as well, and tried to cheer up the boy in it's own special way. That being just shocking Zeb everytime the Lasat so much as walked past the Droid.

Hera sits in her room after the most recent fail, trying to persuade them to allow their searching to continue.

"I'm sorry Specter 2, but after the message was transmitted, citizens of all walks of life have begun rebelling against the Empire. If he were to be captured at this moment, thousands would lose the resolve that he instilled within them. Upon saying that, what you are asking for would do just that."

"I understand Fulcrum, we'll lay low for now until the next mission. Specter 2 out." After Hera cuts the transmission, she only dreads the up coming conversation she will have to share with her crew. When the Twi'lek leaves her cabin, she can hear Zeb and Sabine talking in the kitchen with Chopper heading that way. Towards the cockpit, there's another conversation, this one is hushed and one sided for the most part, but when she recognizes the voices, she gives a sad smile.

She hangs back by the entrance and sees the holo screen activated to the home of Senator Organa with the twins crowding the screen. Ezra sits in the co-pilot's chair holding his knees to his chest with only his eyes peaking over the folded limbs. The twins tell him all that he missed in his time of radio silence, and Ezra adds in a few comments here and there. Hera leaves before her presence is felt and goes to join the other crew members.

"~ ~ do you think is going to happen now?" Sabine asks, not realizing that Hera is standing in the door. Before the Lasat can answer the question Hera jumps in. "Fulcrum wants us to lay low for awhile."

Sabine looks up. "Lay low? Ezra is reverting back to timid slave, and your source wants us to lay low? Hera, I honestly think that will do more harm than good at this point. I know you've noticed Ezra each time we return with bad news, and I think this will truly break him."

Hera nods at the assessment. "I know, which is why I wish that was more we could do."

Unknown to the crew was that Ezra was discussing what was happening with his friends over the comm. The twins were happy to final being able to reach their brother figure, but wished it were under better conditions.

"They're just giving up? Only because of something you said over a transmission?" Aola questions, her green eyes shrinking into a glare.

"Sis, It's not really their fault, they-" Oola tries to defend but her twin cuts back in. "Are weak, spineless, dontha dung that god decided to make sentient."

"There's always someone with more power."

The twins look to the young male and for not the first time are struck with the fact that they are so far from each other. Ezra's gaze is downcast, and his unkempt hair hangs in front of his eyes.

"No matter where we are there is always someone with more power, but unknown to those with more power, those who are believed to be beneath them have power of their own."

With those words both twins smile "What ever you need we'll help you."

* * *

Hera enters the cockpit just in time to see an upset Ezra leaving, arms around his middle. The Twi'lek would love nothing more than to comfort the boy, but knows her words will fall on deaf ears. with that in mind she contacts the twins.

it is the pink skinned twin that picks up the line as though she was waiting for it.

"Oh hey Hera, What can I do for you?" She says with a tilt of her head, her lekku twitching in curiousity.

"Sorry to start this way, but were you waiting by the comm?"

"No, I was actually just about to try to get a hold of Ezra if he is feeling up for it today that is."

Hera can only shake her head, "I'm sorry, he just left, and I don't think he'll come if I called him back."

"I see, is there something you needed than?" Aola inquires

"I know that this may be of some inconvenience, but I was hoping you and you sister would be able to come to the ghost and try to talk with Ezra here. I know he needs to talk about it, but maybe if it were with someone who knows him personally it would be better."

The younger Twi'lek's eyes light up and she immediately begins nodding. "That sounds great I'll let Oola and Master Organa know at once. He should be able to send you a meeting location with you shortly." and with that the connection cuts off.

Hera sits back and waits for the co-ordinance that Aola was sure would be coming.

When they come and the twins are picked up, the three teens embrace while the rest of the specters speak with the senator's daughter. Unbeknownst to them the slaves were scheming.

"Did you find out the information?" the raven haired teen whispers and Oola gives a small nod as though she is burying her head in deeper into Ezra's shoulder. "Yup, we'll need the droid though."


	15. Silent Threat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N The Slaves prove just how deadly those silent few can be.  
> So without further ado, Let the chaos ensue

When the Twins first arrived, the remaining crew found it strange that the three began cleaning. Hera wished for nothing more than to tell the three to stop and relax, that there was no need for them to do this, Sabine was able to persuade the Twi'lek to let them be, saying that something familiar would be good for them.

What they didn't know was that as the three cleaned, they were grabbing anything that would help with their plan. The very first thing they did was let Chopper in on it. When the twins first came, and explained the need for the droid. Along with that came the need for paint and any mundane information the empire might need or already know.

The Information was easy, when the twins first came aboard they brought with them a data chip with said information. The paint on the other hand was a bit more difficult seeing how every time the crew was able to find paint Sabine would immediately take it to her room.

It was when Ezra was in the process of getting the paint, that Sabine became a part of the plan.

* * *

Ezra entered the Mandalorian's room with the bucket of water and rag, going with the image of someone about to clean. Truly the bucket was dumped out into the bathroom sink as soon as he was alone, and the needed paint would be placed inside the now empty bucket.

He had his back turned towards the door looking for the specific paints when there was a throat being cleared behind him. "Finding what you're looking for Ezra?"

The raven haired male jolts and turns slowly with a can of black paint and another of red. Seeing the elder specter in the doorway he drops the cans as tremors take over. Within moments the others are there, and the twin are quick to stand in front of the other.

"Don't hurt him, it was our plan." Aola says as she stands with her arms spread while her twin holds their brother figure close as he shakes.

Hera looks over the image the three project and exhales. "Ok, what are you three doing? and are their openings in the plan for us?"

The twins look between each other and Ezra back at the specters. "With all do respect ma'am, aren't you going to order us to forget the plan, or demand to know what the plan is?" Oola inquires

"As much as I'd like to, I'd rather give you an option, but just know that we will probably offer help no matter what happens."

There's a whispered conversation between the original schemers before they finally relent and reveal their plan.

"So after talking with Ezra that one time before we came on board, we overheard Senator Organa discussing the new carrier droids that were being used to distribute information. So Ezra under the guise of cleaning was going to get the paint we needed to paint Chopper to look like one." Aola begins.

"After that was done, we were going to hijack the Phantom with hopefully Chopper's help to avoid your detection. Once we got the information we needed we were going to plan accordingly." Oola finishes.

Sabine leans against the wall with her arms folded before she says, "That's a pretty good play, but how were you planning on getting past the imps that would surely be blocking the droid?"

"That would be dependent on the twins." Ezra says finally calming down knowing that they aren't in trouble.

"Were you seriously going to send in the twins to fight a bunch of troopers?" Zeb demands gruffly and all three shake their heads.

"We are just the distractions, Ezra was going to get the droid." the twins say together in an almost coy manner.

"How are two girls going to distract a couple of troopers?" and with that simple question from Zeb a switch appears to have been flipped, and surprisingly Oola is the one to make the first move

She slowly approaches the place she last heard the gruff voice, and with a sway in her hips she makes her way over asking. "Did our dear little brother ever explain to you what our duties included back with our masters?"

Aola begins making the same way of advancing. She squeezes through Zeb and Sabine, making sure to mainly press against the Lasat. "The few things we taught him, and the things we kept secret?" She asks reaching up and grabbing the larger aliens shoulders and her sister does the same with his neck.

"So let me get this straight, you're going to sway your hips and act all coy?"

"Among other things, but if you'd follow us into another room, we'd be willing to show you more." The twins say together once again in a coy manner, and that alone almost makes Zeb commit.

"Oh you girls are good, but leave the distraction to us alright." Sabine says after observing the show, and with that one sentence both girls both girls let go and retreat back to Ezra.

They almost seem relieved.

"So sense our plan is scrapped at this point, what do you guys propose?" Aola inquires.

And the plan is discussed before being put into action.

* * *

By the end of the night Kanan is back with the crew, Ezra shows off his two new scars, and The spectres learn of a the bigger rebellion, bringing some former clones into the fray. Facing against more inquisitors, and even coming face to face with Azmorgan again.

Needless to say Ezra is exhausted and just happy to relax with his sisters who are staying with the Rebel forces and their brother. "I kinda wish Xylina was here, you know, just to get our little family unit back together."

"I know what you mean Ezra. Auntie Lin, the older twins and our sweet little baby brother."

When the former slaves were taking their breathe the leaders of the rebellion were in the middle of a meeting.

Sabine was discussing what happened on her recovery mission. All gather around the central holo table to discuss the mark Sabine was presenting. It was recognizable as a brand placed on most slaves in the system, including the three within their care.

"How do we proceed with this information?" Hera Asked

"I honestly have no clue, I think that it'd be best if we keep this fact from him, he's fully trusting us, and I don't want to ruin that by revealing the fact I wanted to be part of Black Sun."

"Does your friend know about Ezra and the Twins?" Ahskoa inquired and Sabine gives a short nod. "Yeah she does, And she said that Black Sun was placing bounties on their heads."

Kanan stands at that revelation "That, we definitely can't let them know."

"Can't argue with you there." Rex says.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Bum Bum Buuummmm, The former slaves have a bounty, and I'm ending off here. Sorry for all of the skipping around, I just have something planned for later that I want to get to.


	16. Worse than Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Rebellion is in need of some more recruits. Luckily for them Ezra and the Twins know just where to find them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for the reunion we deserve
> 
> So without further ado let the chaos ensue.

The twins were absolutely destroyed at hearing about the death of Ezra's parents and found comfort in the infants the rebels brought with them. The rebel leaders were discussing what to do with the information and Ezra was taking a much needed rest with the holo image of his last family photo. As he falls deeper asleep the force calls out.

_He's standing in front of his home as hands reach out towards him. Just before the hands cover him completely he hears two distinct, familiar voices._

_"Ezra."_

_"We are here Ezra."_

_The vision shifts to the slave quarters he grew up in and the same white loth cat sleeps curled up on the spot he claimed forever ago. He reaches out and other flashes appear. He's hurt and some slavers are thrown._

_"We need you kit."_

_"Don't give up."_

_Just as he reaches out for the cat the floor falls away leaving his resting spot to float with the loth cat looking down at him, and once again he screams as he falls._

And lands with a thud at the foot of the bunk with the same cat looking down from his bunk. He stays on the floor for a bit when the door opens and the twins poke their heads through. "Ezra you ok?"

"We heard a crash."

Ezra nods, "I had another vision, and I'm terrified for what it means."

"Want to talk to your crew about it?" Oola inquires and Ezra nods as her twins helps the human stand.

The trio makes their way to the main command center of the ship. Making no noise as they do so. Hearing some of the discussion "We need more soldiers if we are to make a bigger impact, any plans?" Fulcrum starts

"We can bring awareness to the cause and rally more support?" on of the lead pilots suggests

"Not if it leads to them getting detained." Ahsoka argues

"What if discreetly hand out flyers to those we've helped?" another supplies.

"That would lead to moles finding them and infiltrating the Rebellion." Ahsoka once again counters.

"What if we free our friends?"

Everyone turns towards the three and finds Ezra has stepped forward with a determined expression.

"And how would we do that exactly?" Commander Sato inquires as he locks gazes with the teen who almost buckles under the gaze.

"No one knows the inside of a slave trade like the three of us do. We could have someone pretend to be a bounty hunter and take advantage of our bounties to get us in. Once we're in the three of us will recruit the slaves with the fourth person acts as a lookout."

Those gathered in the room stare at the three teens, taking in the determined stances and few notice the trembling fists at their sides. Those that do notice realize that they are willing to go to the ends of the Universe to assist them.

Just like they were trained to do.

"How exactly do you know of the bounties? no one mentioned them around you." Hera questions and the twins shake their heads.

"Not true, we were cleaning when we heard someone mention it in passing saying something like, 'With the money their bounties would bring in, the rebellion would be set for life.' and from there we did a little searching of our own. You'd be surprised at what the holonet can provide when you actually know how to use it."

Hera approaches Ezra slowly before gently placing a hand on his shoulder. "You've come a long way since you first joined us, Are you sure you want to do this?"

The teen under her hand nods. "I'm sure. There were good people I meant there, one who I know will jump at the chance to join."

"And who is this person?" Commander Sato inquires and the three share a look

"Just know that we call her Auntie, she was the head slave in our section of the base." Oola says with such conviction it confuses the rebel leaders.

"But wouldn't that mean they would be liable to hurt you should hey deem it acceptable?" Hera asks, motherly concern for the three taking hold.

"No she would never hurt anyone. in fact she would typically take our punishments." Aola explains as Ezra jumps in

"The way I see it the Slavers are most similar to the Empire, with the one in charge as the empire and those that follow are the imps. after that you have two different types of slaves. you have those that willingly hurt fellow slaves if only to get on the slavers good side. I'd consider them the sith of the slaves seeing how they hurt others in fear of being hurt themselves otherwise. They also tend to rat out their fellow slaves should they plot something. That's how I lost my leg."

"On the other hand, there are slaves that are the mentors and caretakers to the others, or new arrivals. I'd like to think of them as the Jedi for they mentor the youths, and protect those that can't protect themselves. Auntie would fit in the latter category." Ezra finishes and the rebels present mull over the information.

Asohka finally voices her thoughts. "So we would want the jedi like slaves but leave the sith ones there?"

the three former slaves huddle together for a silent discussion. before Aola speaks up. "If possible, we would want all of the slaves, because even if they are willing to hurt the others in their group, it is only because they are afraid of facing harsher punishment should they refuse. We've all had to face that same fear, and we've all acted upon it."

Once again, the rebels are struck silent with the information the three are providing, and Sabine voices her fears. "Does that mean you had to harm each other?"

All three nod.

"It was mostly acting on our part, but they always had us draw a drop of blood before we could stop. It was just another way of breaking us." Aola says as she reaches over to grab her sisters hand, and rubs circles on the back with her thumb.

"What do you propose we do, if we are to go with your plan?" Kanan finally speaks up, afraid of the answer he will receive.

"It would be best if we had someone act as a wannabe slaver, and bring us back to the main compound. They would have to stay on the compound and hurt others, but if we're lucky Auntie will still be there, and she can get others to rebel with us." Ezra explains, knowing that is not what his teacher wants to hear.

In the end the work out the plan and the three are dressed in rags, and have their shock collars placed around their necks. in the few days it takes to travel to the main slave compound the three eat nothing but scraps, and constantly do domestic work, only to fall asleep in the cargo hold at the end of the night.

Sabine and Kanan who decide to act as the slavers to to persuade the three against the behavior, but loss the argument before it can even begin.

By the time the five reach their destination, the three are considerable lighter with their clothes hanging off their bodies, they are cuffed together. Awaiting their arrival.

* * *

The arrival at the base is met with guns pointed at them from all sides. Kanan and Sabine keep their hands at their sides, only thanks to the instructions provided by Ezra during their trip here. Behind the two "slavers" and the slaves they are returning for the bounty offered.

After the introductions are handled, they are ready to head off to the lodgings they are being provided with. What they aren't prepared for in the electrowhip being placed in both of their hands and the simple explanation of, "Just to prove you are who you say you are."

Ezra explained that this always happened when a new slaver wanted to join. if it were someone close, the slaver would never hurt them. If they weren't close or the new slaver was eager, the electrowhip would be placed on the highest setting before being used. Ezra erged them to go with the highest setting, to gain the slavers trust quicker.

Kanan is still not prepared to hear the scream of pain when she does as Ezra instructed, and whips him over the shoulder, right unto the teens back. She goes for two which was again encouraged by Ezra before doing it once with both of the girls before handing the whip over. Kanan takes a deep breath to calm himself before following suit. Leading to Ezra falling unconscious.

"Huh, guess you two were serious weren't you?" one of the real slavers says as he calls over another slave to escort their allies to the resting area. The slave they call over is a female Lasat. The female is just a few inches shorter than Zeb with misty purple fur that's been dulled down due to malnutrition. The pale purple color makes the violet stripes stand out more. She wears the customary shock collar that marks her as a slave. the true kicker is her missing arm.

As soon as she sees Ezra and the twins, the glare she sends at the two is completely murderous. But she manages to grab the teen around the middle, having him dangle. With her shoulder she gestures for the twins to follow her away.

As soon as the four are out of sight the two slavers lead Kanan and Sabine to their rooms.

Once the two are alone, they both release a sigh of relief.

* * *

Early the next morning the two are shown around base. The mess hall being the first stop to allow the tow to get breakfast. The kitchen staff being slaves themselves. When they see the two they appear weary and unsure about what to do.

After breakfast their taken to where the rest of the slaves are so they can learn about ordering the slaves around. In the center of the room they can see the twins sitting up besides Ezra with the lasat standing off to the side observing. The real kicker are the two humans.

The first is a woman with tanned skin and familiar eyes. Her dark brown is cut short with just enough to place in a ponytail. Beside her is a taller male with wavy ravenett hair and beard with stormy grey eyes. Both have prominent wrinkles and other features that the two can tie back

As they watch the mother holds her son close in her lap as she makes slight swaying motions as if to comfort the unconscious teen. Ezra's father only has a hand placed on his wife's shoulder.

As the the scene finally registers They finally realize that what the old governor said was wrong. The Bridger's were never killed, just taken to a place where death is a blessing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One thing that I had in mind since the beginning of this fanfic, is that "There are worse things than death." For Ezra that would be his time as a slave. So imagine his joy at finding his parents alive, but heartache at realizing they experienced the same torture he has.
> 
> But if there's one thing I know is that a broken Bridge can always be rebuilt.

**Author's Note:**

> yay cliffhanger and again this idea isn't mine I used the story listen above as inspiration, but added my own touch. Let me know what you think in the comments below.


End file.
